Nikola Jokic returned to the Denver Nuggets’ lineup Friday night after being sidelined since Dec. 29 because of a bone bruise in his hyperextended left knee and had 31 points and 12 rebounds in a 122-109 win over the visiting LA Clippers.
Jokic, who had been listed as questionable going into the game, went 8-of-11 from the floor, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range, and 13-of-17 from the line while also adding five assists.
“I was not scared to use [the knee],” Jokic said. “I was not thinking about it while I was running and while I was playing. I think that’s a good sign I’m ready.”
Jokic is set to play in Sunday’s showdown against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Denver and is still eligible for season awards such as MVP and All-NBA.
“It’s great to have [Jokic] back, but let’s temper a little bit,” Nuggets coach David Adelman said before the game. “The guy’s been hurt. He’s been out. Having the best player, in my opinion, alive is a major, major thing to get back. I just want to make sure we temper the idea of what it could be like. He’s got to get out there and feel comfortable again. We all know what it is when he is comfortable. It’s something we’ve never seen.”
The 6-foot-11 center got hurt in the first half of Denver’s loss to the Miami Heat in December. Before that, he ranked fifth in the NBA in scoring at 29.6 points per game. He also has 16 triple-doubles this season, which leads the NBA.
Jokic is also averaging career highs in assists (11.0) and 3-point percentage (43%).
The Nuggets went 10-6 in Jokic’s 16-game absence, the most games he has missed in any season of his career.
“It was a new thing for me,” Jokic said of being unable to play for a month. “I was getting nervous because I didn’t know the steps. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, what I was supposed to feel. It was a different kind of nervous.”
Jokic notched his 29th double-double of the season despite a minutes restriction imposed by Adelman. The 30-year-old Serbian was limited to 25 minutes, his second fewest in a game this season.
The Nuggets continued to miss several key rotation players Friday, including Aaron Gordon (hamstring), Christian Braun (ankle) and Cam Johnson (knee), but welcomed back Jamal Murray (hamstring, hip) and Jonas Valanciunas (calf) for the game.
“We’re moving in the right direction,” Adelman said of Jokic. “Obviously, we’re excited to have him back, as we will be with any of these guys that have been out for an extended period of time.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
