Nikola Jokic on Denver’s season: ‘We’re not even close (to) where we’re supposed to be’

The Denver Nuggets and Nikola Jokic had an opportunity to see how they stack up against the best team in the NBA this season on Friday. But the Nuggets lost to the 27-4 Cleveland Cavaliers by 14 points despite a 27-point triple-double from the Serbian big man.

With 29 games in the Nuggets’ 2024-25 regular season in the books, Jokic admitted that Denver has a long way to go as a team. However, he also expressed optimism about the future.

After losing to Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and company, the Nuggets hold a record of 16-13 on the season. Additionally, Denver sits as the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference and is three games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the No. 4 spot.

Denver’s loss to the Cavaliers marks the team’s second consecutive defeat as well. On Christmas Day, the Nuggets fell to Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal and the Phoenix Suns by a final score of 110-100.

Unfortunately for fans of the Nuggets, Jamal Murray hasn’t played at the top of his game so far this season. He’s averaging his fewest points per game since the 2019-20 campaign and is turning the ball over 2.3 times per contest, which is tied for a career-high.

Plus, he’s shooting just 43.3 percent from the field and 35.6 percent from 3-point range across 23 games played (all starts) to this point.

A lack of success on the defensive end of the floor has also played a role in the Nuggets’ subpar start to the campaign. Denver ranks 24th out of all 30 teams in opponent points allowed per game with 117.2. The Nuggets’ defensive rating of 113.7 ranks 18th in the NBA to boot.

The Nuggets’ defense showed how porous it can be against the Cavaliers. Denver allowed Cleveland to score a whopping 149 points as a team, and six players reached double digits in scoring for the squad.

Jokic’s Nuggets will hope to avoid their third loss in a row when they face off against the Detroit Pistons on Saturday night. With a record of 14-17, Detroit has exceeded expectations this season and looks like a new and improved squad compared to a year ago.