Nikola Jokic and Denver Nuggets just lost their second game in a row in the 2022 NBA playoffs against Warriors, that too in the same humiliating fashion.
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Coming into the playoffs, the Nuggets certainly had an exceptional season considering their injury woes. Despite two of their best players in Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. missing, the Nuggets were still able to take the 6th seed in a stacked Western Conference.
Much of it was because of the heroics that Nikola Jokic put up. Averaging almost a triple-double, the Serbian put on a show in the regular season. With the best PER rating the league has ever seen and given how little help he had, there is no denying that Jokic is one of the favorites to win the MVP title this season.
The 4-time All-Star was certainly expected to dominate against the Warriors as well. While the Dubs have a stacked lineup with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, their center rotation is sparse, which in theory should have given an opportunity for Jokic to showcase his talents. But the 27-year-old certainly has not performed to his standards.
Kendrick Perkins blasts Nikola Jokic for not stepping up against Warriors
Jokic and the Nuggets have had a hard time against the Warriors. Losing the first game 123-107, Denver struggled. The Joker also didn’t help his team much with unnecessary turnovers and a dismal +/- rating of -19.
A similar trend continued last night as well with that plus-minus accumulating to an abysmal -45. Shooting 9-20 from the field and unable to shoot a single three-pointer, Jokic ended up with the worst plus-minus rating in the game with -26. Meanwhile, players like Will Barton also failed to step up.
While the first half was still competitive with the Nuggets trailing by 6 points, the floodgates opened in the third quarter. With Jordan Poole and Curry taking over, the Warriors outscored Denver 44-30 in the 3rd quarter. Jokic, meanwhile, was unable to make his shots. Looking absolutely gassed, the 27-year-old could not dominate either end of the floor.
Eventually, he got ejected and ended his misery early. Kendrick Perkins certainly wasn’t the biggest fan of the Joker’s performance.
Jokic body language is horrible.
— Kendrick Perkins (@KendrickPerkins) April 19, 2022
It is fair to say that the Joker is struggling against the Warriors in the playoffs so far.
Nikola Jokic is -45 in two games this series, the worst on the Nuggets.
He just got ejected. pic.twitter.com/J1NtCFO62B
— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 19, 2022
With the next two games being played in Denver, Jokic certainly needs to step up if the team wants to take a game away from the Warriors. Can the reigning MVP show the world why he is the best in the league, or will the Dubs’ sweep them?
