A three-time MVP, Nikola Jokic is having yet another historic season. He is currently on track to become just the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double in a season. Almost nightly, you can expect eye-popping numbers in the box score from The Joker. He is also someone who mostly leads with his play rather than his words. Nikola Jokic provided some telling comments though after the Denver Nuggets loss to the bottom-feeding Washington Wizards on Saturday.
Nikola Jokic Comments After Loss To Bottom-Feeding Wizards
Nikola Jokic’s Comments Clearly Show His Disappointment
On Saturday, Denver lost to the Wizards by the score of 126-123. Washington is now an Eastern Conference-worst 15-51 on the season. Despite the loss, Jokic was his normal productive self. The 30-year-old finished the outing with 40 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists, and two blocks in 39 minutes. The team was a +6 with him on the court and a -9 when he rested.
The 6-foot-11 center provided some telling comments after the disappointing loss at home. At the postgame press conference, Jokic said,
“We cannot have that comfort zone that we’re just going into the playoffs because we’re not playing good. I think we’re lucky that we’re third in the standings. We are not playing good. Hopefully, we’re going to figure it out somehow or not.”
The loss dropped Denver to 43-25. As Jokic stated, they currently are third in the Western Conference. They possess the same record as the second-seeded Houston Rockets and fourth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies.
Jokic also stated,
“We actually had 10-15 games that we were kind of playing good, but I think lately, even the games that we won, we didn’t play good. In the playoffs, that’s not acceptable.”
The 2023 NBA Finals MVP could be talking about a period when the Nuggets won nine in a row from January 31 until February 20. Since that stretch, Denver is just 6-6.
Swept By Wizards This Season
Remarkably, the Nuggets actually got swept in the two-game series this year against the Wizards. The two teams also met up over three months ago on December 7 in Washington. The Wizards exited that game victorious by a 122-113 margin.
What made the loss even more remarkable and unacceptable is that it came during a career-best night from Jokic. He dropped 56 points that evening, besting his previous career-high of 50. In that loss, he also grabbed 16 rebounds and dished out eight assists.
So Jokic has a right to be discouraged with the final results both times Denver met up with the Wizards. Add it up, and he totaled 96 points, 29 rebounds, and 17 assists in the two losses to Washington. Those average out to a not-so-shabby 48 points, 14.5 rebounds, and 8.5 assists. Denver was a +5 in the 79 minutes he played and a -17 in the 17 minutes he didn’t.
With just 14 games remaining, the Nuggets do have time to get right prior to the postseason. It was just on March 10 when Denver defeated the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. They next play on Monday when Denver goes on the road to take on the red-hot Golden State Warriors.
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