Nikola Jokic has already missed a significant amount of time due to an injury, yet the Denver Nuggets are still having a good enough run and have not fallen off as some pundits initially thought. The former NBA MVP will make his return soon enough—and some believe a second championship isn’t out of reach when that happens.
Nuggets Already Looking at the Bigger Picture
The good news is Nikola Jokic is reportedly in the “ramp-up phase” of the recovery process. According to Shams Charania, the three-time MVP will be reevaluated again before the NBA trade deadline on February 5, but sources have stated that Jokic may or may not return on the expected date. Initially, the team expected a four-week absence from The Joker, but that timeline may be pushed back further depending on the medical results.
Should Jokic continue to miss games, he will be forfeiting eligibility to win awards like the MVP, which he was trending to win again after a superb start to the season. On the flip side, having a well-rested and fully recovered Jokic would be beneficial for the Nuggets in the long run. They’ll be 100% come playoff time with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray at the helm.
Nuggets Staying Alive Without Jokic
Last season, Denver struggled every time the Serbian big man was sidelined. In the 12 games Jokic missed, the Nuggets went only 4-8 and were obviously worse offensively.
This season, however, tells a different story. The 2023 champs are still thriving even without their best player on the floor. They’ve gone 9-6 in the past 15 games without Jokic and have surprisingly kept their spot as the third seed in a competitive Western Conference.
Thankfully for Denver, Jamal Murray has taken things up a notch, as he’s currently having his best career season so far, averaging career highs of 25.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game, on top of shooting 43.9% from deep.
The same goes for Peyton Watson, who has bumped up his scoring output in January by putting up 21.0 points a game, including three 30-point showcases to start the year. It also helps that Aaron Gordon and Jonas Valanciunas are back in the rotation after the two went down with injuries before the end of 2025.
The Nuggets are currently 31-16 and just 0.5 games behind the scorching San Antonio Spurs. Although they’ve been excellent so far, the Nuggets’ upcoming schedule is much more tedious, as they’ll face the Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons, Oklahoma City Thunder, and the New York Knicks next week, before Jokic is cleared to play.
Despite the setback, the Nuggets fanbase is optimistic that the team can contend for the championship this year. While they’ve had issues finding the right pieces to build around their superstar, it seems that keeping their heads above water in the past month has proved they’re one of the toughest contenders in the league right now, with or without Jokic.
