Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic suffered a left knee injury in the final seconds of the second quarter against the Miami Heat. He did not return to the game. The city of Denver will now hold its collective breath as it awaits imaging results on Jokic.
The play occurred when Heat wing Jaime Jacquez attacked Spencer Jones off the bounce and shouldered Jones away for a fadeaway attempt from the mid-range. Jones moved backwards with his right foot unintentionally landing on Jokic’s left ankle. That caused the big man’s knee to hyperextend backwards and the pain was palpable.
Jokic immediately went to ground clutching his left knee. He was helped to his feet by teammates and support staff before walking to the locker room with a pronounced limp. One of the most durable players in the league, Jokic has played at least 70 games in all but one season in his career. That was the 2022-23 season where he played 69.
Players have to play at least 65 games to be eligible for end of season awards.
Through 31 games this season, Jokic has averaged 29.9 points, 12.4 rebounds, 11.1 assists and 1.4 steals. He’s doing all this shooting 60.4% from the field including 44% from three and 85.5% at the free-throw line. He is once again the favorite to win MVP and is the second-leading vote-getter for the All-Star Game.
A tie-game at halftime ended in a 24-point Heat victory, already illustrating Jokic’s importance to the Nuggets. Denver’s next game is Wednesday night in Toronto against the Raptors.
Nikola Jokic went down with an apparent leg injury vs. the Heat. pic.twitter.com/4kPf9HAOt8
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 30, 2025
Nuggets’ Depth Set To Receive Biggest Test Yet
There has been no shortage of injuries for the Nuggets this season. Aaron Gordon has missed 19 games this season with a hamstring issue while Christian Braun has missed 21 games with an ankle injury. Cam Johnson was the latest to hit the shelf with a knee injury a few days ago and has been ruled out for four to six weeks.
Denver made significant improvements to its depth in the offseason to mitigate these types of losses. Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. have both proven very good fits at the guard spots. Jonas Valanciunas has also provided important breathing room at center as Jokic is averaging nearly two fewer minutes than last season.
Valancunias’ value is about to receive its biggest test yet as he will likely step into a starting role. The manner of the injury indicates Jokic will miss at least a bit of time. Jamal Murray is also set to receive a huge test in terms of the attention he receives.
The Nuggets are currently 22-10 on the season, good for third in the West. They are in the midst of a seven-game East coast road trip. Things could get ugly from here as they’re currently 0-2 on the trip with games in Toronto and Cleveland to come.
It’s hard to speculate beyond that until we know more on the extent of Jokic’s injury.
“Immediately, he knew something was wrong,” Nuggets coach David Adelman said after the game. “Hey, this is part of the NBA. Anybody who gets hurt in this game, it’s kind of gut-wrenching, especially somebody as special as he is. We’ll find out more tomorrow. We’ll move on as a team.
“Obviously, right now, I’m more concerned just about him as a person and the disappointment of going through something like that.”
