The Denver Nuggets suffered a surprising 122-113 loss to the struggling Washington Wizards, a crew that had managed solely two wins all season. Including to the sting of the defeat, Nikola Jokic delivered a NBA career-best efficiency, scoring a formidable 56 factors, which finally wasn’t sufficient to carry his crew.
The Nuggets have been unable to capitalize on Jokic‘s outstanding efforts. Towards the Wizards, the Serbian heart narrowly missed a triple-double, including 16 rebounds and 8 assists to his 56 factors.
After the sport, the three-time MVP didn’t maintain again, jokingly suggesting his teammates would possibly want a monetary incentive to reignite their focus. “In my nation, the place I’m coming from, after this sort of stretch, you’re gonna get a paycheck that may be a little bit lower than you’re price,” Jokic mentioned. “So possibly that’s what we have to do. Perhaps a bit of motivation that manner.”
The Serbian star additionally hinted that benching underperforming gamers would possibly function an efficient wake-up name. “What’s the title of it? Being benched? Being on the bench, I feel that’s actually good motivation too,” he added.
Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets dribbles the ball towards the Washington Wizards in the course of the second half at Capital One Enviornment. (Patrick Smith/Getty Photos)
Coach Malone takes duty
Nuggets head coach Michael Malone didn’t draw back from the crew’s struggles, emphasizing defensive lapses as the first concern. He additionally took full accountability for the crew’s disappointing efficiency.
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“We’ve lots of points, primarily on the defensive finish of the ground,” Malone mentioned. “I’m doing a extremely poor job with this crew. For us to be 11-10 at this level and dropping to a crew that, over their final 5 video games, is averaging 100 factors a sport, they usually put up 122 on us — I’m embarrassed by that.”
Jokic says it’s a crew downside
Jokic got here to his coach’s protection, asserting that the duty for the Nuggets’ struggles lies with your entire crew. He pointed to an absence of communication as a major issue.
“Immediately, and the final couple of video games, have been actually unhealthy for us,” he defined. “We’re actually going within the mistaken path. I feel it’s all people’s fault. It’s not simply Coach’s fault. It’s not his fault that we can’t make photographs. It’s not his fault that we don’t talk.”
