The Nuggets are playing with fire now.
With a 117-108 home loss to the Timberwolves on Sunday, they dropped into fifth place in the Western Conference standings for the first time since Nov. 2, 2025, ending a 119-day streak of top-four status that included 32 persistent days without Nikola Jokic.
Since he returned to the lineup, the Nuggets have lost eight of 13 games, including a clunker to Minnesota that they never led after halftime. Jokic wasn’t the problem this time. He led Denver (37-24) with 35 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists. His 37 minutes were a victory. The nine without him were disastrous.
“We gave them life,” coach David Adelman said. “I really thought it was us, not them.”
The Nuggets were deadlocked in record with Minnesota when the ball was tipped. They still hold the hypothetical tiebreaker over their division rival after finishing the regular-season series with a 3-1 head-to-head edge. But by dropping to fifth, they have at least temporarily fallen out of position to host a first-round playoff series, which they’ve done six of the last seven years.
They’re a game ahead of the sixth-place Lakers and 2.5 games clear of the Play-In Tournament as they fly to Salt Lake City for a back-to-back Monday.
“I think it’s a good thing to happen,” Jokic said. “Then you’re gonna start worrying. And you’re gonna start to care probably more. I think the struggle is probably good, you know? If you fail, I think it’s just gonna keep you worried, I will say. And then you’re gonna play a little bit harder and better.”
The Timberwolves matched their hosts with 13 turnovers, but they doubled up Denver in points off those turnovers. They outscored their hosts 30-6 on fast breaks. They rode a balanced scoring effort led by Anthony Edwards’ 21 and Bones Hyland’s 18 off the bench. The former Nuggets guard danced around Ball Arena with glee throughout a 6-for-7 shooting game and was even bold enough to confront 7-footer Jonas Valanciunas after taking exception to a foul.
Afterward, Hyland said he doesn’t feel any extra motivation when he plays against the team that traded him out of annoyance in the middle of a championship push.
“He’s one of those guys, if he sees one go in, he might have a big night,” Edwards said. “I feel like one of these games, he’s gonna have a really big night for us. And it may come in the playoffs. You never know.”
Donte DiVincenzo (0) of the Minnesota Timberwolves passes to Rudy Gobert (27) as Bruce Brown (11) of the Denver Nuggets defends during the fourth quarter of the Timberwolves’ 117-108 win at Ball Arena in Denver on Sunday, March 1, 2026. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
Jokic came in with 117 combined points in his previous two home games against Minnesota. The Timberwolves have generally been more content than other teams to turn him into a scorer, but in particular, the pick-and-pop 3-pointer is usually a shot available to him against Rudy Gobert’s drop coverage. In those two monster scoring performances — most recently a Christmas masterpiece that broke the NBA’s overtime scoring record — Jokic shot a combined 10 of 17 beyond the arc. But he came into Sunday’s game on a 15-for-54 (28%) slump over his last nine contests.
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“I think that every player has a little shooting slump or whatever (sometimes), so hopefully, I can get back on track and take the shots that I want to shoot,” he said Friday after a 2-for-10 performance. “Or take the shots that are high-percentage shots.”
He attempted only four 3s this time against Minnesota, finding his touch from the midrange instead on a 15-for-26 night from the field. He shepherded the Nuggets to a 31-22 lead after the first quarter.
But Denver’s age-old issues with him off the court have resurfaced recently. The Wolves immediately pulled even with a 9-0 run to start the second frame as Jokic took his usual rest. They were on their way to seizing control of the game, galvanized by Hyland and trade deadline acquisition Ayo Dosunmu. Quick guards like them have often been an Achilles heel for Denver’s defense. Their aggressiveness in transition fueled Minnesota against what Adelman described as poor effort.
“I thought we let struggles offensively, missed shots, turn into horrendous defense. That run, I believe it was in two minutes and three seconds,” Adelman said. “I told them after the game it was inexcusable. I thought we were very competitive throughout the night, but not during that two minutes. And that can lose you a game against a really good team.”
Nikola Jokic (15) of the Denver Nuggets shoots over Rudy Gobert (27) of the Minnesota Timberwolves during the third quarter at Ball Arena in Denver on Sunday, March 1, 2026. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
“But we still had the 24 minutes to do something,” Jokic said. “So yes, they had the run. It feels like even in the second half, third quarter, we had momentum but they still kind of (would) make a play or score when they needed.”
The Nuggets trailed by eight at intermission and by as many as 14 early in the second half. They flirted with a comeback several times — a Jalen Pickett-led 8-0 run late in the third, a brief lightning bolt of energy in the fourth when Jamal Murray posterized Gobert — but Minnesota had an answer every time.
Murray’s dunk forced a Chris Finch timeout as Jokic checked back in with a 104-96 deficit. A turnover on Denver’s first possession out of the timeout gifted Gobert an easy transition slam. Then Edwards hit a max-difficulty 3-pointer, and the Nuggets were snuffed.
“This one’s tough because a lot of us didn’t make shots, so your defense has to be on par when we’re not making shots,” Murray said. “Especially when we’re not making shots that we expect each and everybody to make. So it was a tough one tonight. They beat us fair and square. It was a good game. But we know what we’re capable of, and we know how to beat them.”
Murray finished with 25 points, five rebounds and four assists. Christian Braun’s play continued to trend in the right direction with 15 points, six boards and a solid defensive impact.
But Cam Johnson, who was haunted by his missed game-winning opportunity at the end of regulation Friday, had the opposite of a bounce-back performance. He went scoreless on six shot attempts as Denver lost his minutes by 13 points. The rest of the starters were all a minus-three or better. Adelman said Johnson’s mobility was affected by an ankle injury. He went to the X-Ray room after the final buzzer and said he’s not confident he’ll be able to play in Utah.
“Cam is our starting small forward,” Adelman said. “I trust him. Tonight, his body just wasn’t there.”
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