Nikola Jokic limped to the locker room after injuring his left knee three seconds before halftime of the Nuggets’ game in Miami on Monday night.
Jokic’s left leg extended, then buckled after the right foot of Denver’s Spencer Jones landed on his left foot. Jones had been defending Miami’s Jaime Jaquez on a drive to the basket with Jokic behind the play. In a nightmare visual for every Denver sports fan, Jokic crumpled to the ground holding his knee as the half ended.
He had 21 points, five rebounds and eight assists in the half — numbers on pace to tie Oscar Robertson for the second-most career triple-doubles in NBA history by the end of the night. Instead, the team announced its three-time MVP center was questionable with a knee injury. Jokic didn’t return in an eventual 147-123 loss. He is expected to undergo an MRI on Tuesday to determine the severity.
“Watching it at halftime, it looked like his feet got tangled up with a teammate, and obviously, immediately, he knew something was wrong,” coach David Adelman told reporters in Miami. “… Anybody that gets hurt in this game, it’s kind of gut-wrenching, especially as someone as special as he is.”
MIAMI, FLORIDA – DECEMBER 29: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets dribbles the ball against Pelle Larsson #9 of the Miami Heat during the second quarter at Kaseya Center on December 29, 2025 in Miami, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images)
Miami Heat center Kel’El Ware, left, defends Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Miami. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Nikola Jokic (15), de los Nuggets de Denver, camina en la duela durante la primera mitad del juego de baloncesto de la NBA contra el Heat de Miami, el lunes 29 de diciembre de 2025, en Miami. (AP Foto/Lynne Sladky)
The Nuggets (22-10) have lost consecutive games for the first time all season. They were tied at halftime, but the Heat quickly built a double-digit lead in the third quarter and never looked back with Jokic out. Adelman felt like Denver played through the uneasy situation with admirable energy, but Miami put together a shooting performance too impressive to overcome.
Jokic finished as his team’s leading scorer despite not playing the second half.
Denver is two games into a seven-game Eastern Conference road trip. The team was scheduled to stay overnight in Miami, then fly to Toronto on Tuesday ahead of a game on Wednesday (5:30 p.m. MT).
“Hoping for the best with the news, and we’ll move forward with the guys we have that are healthy,” Adelman said. “This group has enough to win some games, bottom line.”
Jokic, 30, has not missed a game this season while averaging 29.9 points (a career-high), 12.4 rebounds (leading the league) and 11.1 assists (leading the league). Regarded as one of the most durable superstars in the NBA, he has missed only 36 regular-season games since the start of the 2019-20 campaign.
He’s been a top-two finisher in league MVP voting for five consecutive years. Entering play on Monday, Denver’s point differential was 16.6 points per 100 possessions better with Jokic on the court than with him on the bench.
The Nuggets (22-9) were already playing without three starters in Miami when he went down. Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Christian Braun (ankle) are nearing returns from their respective injuries, which have prevented them from playing in December, but Cam Johnson went through a similar injury scare to Jokic’s last week in Dallas.
Johnson is expected to miss at least four to six weeks with a hyperextended knee. That length of time was considered a decent outcome under the circumstances. He underwent an MRI the day after the injury that revealed no structural damage.
That will be the Nuggets’ hope for Jokic as well after the jarring turn of events Monday — “obviously, a shock for him,” as Adelman described it after the loss.
The first-year coach said he anticipates “my mind will wander (tonight), and it’ll wonder about what we have to do going forward if he is out for a while or for a long time.” But he decided to wait until Tuesday to have the coaching staff get together and begin discussing how to navigate a period of time without Jokic.
“I think everybody needs to take a deep breath here,” Adelman said. “I think you, sometimes when there’s anxiety or stress and you force-feed a meeting or a group, I think a lot of stuff comes out that’s not thought-forward, I think everyone had to take a break, take a breather, get the actual news first of whatever this is. … And then we can refocus and make smart decisions about what’s best for this team.”
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