The bumps just keep coming for the Denver Nuggets.
Nikola Jokic, who returned just over a week ago from a 16-game absence due to a hyperextended left knee, is listed as questionable for Saturday’s game against the Chicago Bulls with a left ankle sprain, according to the team’s official injury report released Friday.
The injury looked to have occurred during Wednesday’s double-overtime loss against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. About halfway through the first quarter, Jokic took an awkward step on Knicks forward OG Anunoby’s foot and immediately collapsed to the floor, sending a collective gasp through the Nuggets’ fanbase.
Jokic wore a wrap on his foot while on the bench the rest of the game. After the contest, he downplayed the scare.
The three-time MVP played a season-high 45 minutes in that Knicks game — well beyond his minute restriction following the knee injury — and still managed to record a triple-double despite an off night. He tied Oscar Robertson for the second-most in league history with 181.
This season, Jokic is averaging 29.1 points, 12.1 rebounds and 10.5 assists.
Jokic sustained the original bone bruise in his hyperextended knee during a late-December game against the Miami Heat and was expected to miss up to six weeks. He returned ahead of schedule on Jan. 31 and immediately looked like himself, posting 31 points and 12 rebounds in a win over the Clippers.
The Nuggets are already thin. Aaron Gordon (right hamstring strain)remains out, while Spencer Jones suffered a concussion on Wednesday and Peyton Watson left with a hamstring injury that could sideline him for several weeks. The only good news is that Cameron Johnson (right knee bone bruise) could make his return in Chicago as he was upgraded to questionable after not playing since before Christmas.
Denver has some time to see how Jokic responds before Saturday’s tip in Chicago. Given the franchise’s championship aspirations and Jokic’s importance, don’t be surprised if the Nuggets err on the side of caution, though he can only miss one more game the rest of the season to maintain eligibility for postseason honors. And a loss on Saturday would extend the Nuggets’ season-worst three-game losing streak to four, with the contest against the Bulls being one of just three left before the All-Star break.
