The shock therapy of Nikola Jokić’s return ultimately did not help Denver in the big Western Conference derby — the reigning champion Oklahoma proved to be too big a bite for the still-depleted Nuggets on their home floor: 121:111!
Nikola Jokić is still being eased back, did not play his usual minutes, and in 29 minutes on the court he scored 16 points, recorded 8 assists and grabbed 7 rebounds.
The Serbian ace tried to get his teammates going in the first half, dishing no-look assists, literally battling the Thunder defense, but it was not enough — the meat grinder kept grinding mercilessly and the defeat was inevitable.
In the home team, alongside Jokić, Watson stood out, playing perhaps the best game of his career, pouring in as many as 29 points, with 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Murray added 12 points and had the same number of assists (5 rebounds).
There were plenty of players in rhythm on the winning side as well, with Wallace posting an impressive 27 points and 6 rebounds, along with the ever-reliable Gilgeous-Alexander: 34 pts, 13 ast, 6 reb.
Denver is tied for second place in the West with a 33–16 record, the same as San Antonio, while Oklahoma sits comfortably in first place at 38–11.
Jokić and his teammates play their next game on Tuesday on the road against the best team in the East, Detroit.