Nikola Jokić was fouled out in the second game of the Oklahoma and Denver series (149:106), and after the match, as usual, he gave short and concise statements.
The Serbian center played one of the weaker matches of his career, scoring only 17 points with eight rebounds and six assists, and also had as many as six turnovers.
He will have to forget all this as soon as possible, and a short memory is one of the best qualities of great champions (or is it not?).
“We didn’t play. Only one team showed up. We were missing shots, turning the ball over, and they were going past us as they pleased. They were much better than us, and that’s why the result was this bad,” Jokić began.
They asked him if he made his sixth foul out of frustration shortly after making his fifth. He finished the match with 1:13 left in the third quarter.
“We fight for position as best we can and deal with the consequences. My last foul was not frustration. I wanted to set a screen for Jamal. It happens.”
Nikola Jokic fouled out in the 3rd quarter 😅 pic.twitter.com/zh6Cbmd4iI
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 8, 2025
He clarified whether Jalen Williams managed to “get under his skin” this time and throw him off his game.
“We saw it in the last game. It’s not that different compared to the last match. He didn’t do anything differently.”
Many wondered if David Adelman was to blame for this and what he was even doing. After the second convincing playoff loss, Jokić stands by the coach.
“What he needs to do. He’s not to blame. We’re all to blame. I think he is too, but we all share it as a group. No one should single anyone out,” said the Serb, thus showing that this team truly has championship DNA. They will never throw any player “under the bus” and make them feel excluded from the group.
They noted that Denver should forget this, but Jokić believes that it is important for that match to remain in the subconscious all the time.
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“No. We must not forget this. We have to learn from this and be much better in the next games. We made mistakes, we didn’t do what we did in the first game,” Nikola Jokić concluded.
The Serbian center finished the match with 1:16 left in the third quarter. He also committed his sixth foul (perhaps he committed the sixth foul intentionally to rest). He finished the game with 17 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. He spent as many as 32 minutes on the court and made six of 16 field goal attempts. As soon as he went out, a belt was placed around his stomach, and many were interested in what that was about. Watch the scene when he leaves the court after his sixth foul.
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