When there’s a three-time MVP on your team, there’s always an expectation that you’re one of the favorites to win. But that’s not how Nikola Jokic operates. He’ll casually drop a 30-point game in his sleep, then show up to the press conference insisting his Denver Nuggets aren’t championship material. Is that true, or is the Joker just downplaying how good they really are?
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The Nuggets won a championship in 2023, but since then, they’ve been eliminated in the Conference Semifinals two years in a row. First, they lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves, then to the defending champions, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Fortunately for Denver, they’re no longer the betting favorites going into the new year, at least according to Jokic. Some of the pressure is off. The Thunder now hold that spot, with Vegas odds favoring the defending champs to win it all again in 2026.
Jokic was asked by the media during a recent scrum whether he enjoyed having some of the pressure lifted now that the Thunder were the bettors’ choice. His answer, however, might surprise you. “I think we were never the favorite, even when we won it. I didn’t feel the pressure since I’m here,” stated the Serbian.
Nikola Jokic on if it’s nice not being championship favorites — and OKC carrying that pressure:
“Hopefully we can be the silent knight, silent horse, dark horse.” pic.twitter.com/hOtK2wKmtN
— DNVR Nuggets (@DNVR_Nuggets) October 10, 2025
Well, to be fair, Jokic’s presence may make one feel that the Nuggets are an elite team. But in reality, they aren’t odds-on favorite. The last time they were, they won. This time, it’s the Thunder.
“They’re definitely the hunted one,” added Jokic, referring of course, to OKC. Why wouldn’t they be? This was the same team that knocked them out in the second round this past postseason.
Denver did challenge them though by pushing them to 7 games, but Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and company were just too much to handle. “Hopefully we can be the silent knight, silent horse, dark horse,” Jokic added.
It’s classic Jokic: calm, confident, and quietly competitive. He’s not interested in headlines or hype; he just wants to play ball and let the results speak for themselves. That mindset is exactly what’s made the Nuggets so dangerous over the years. While everyone else is talking, Denver’s usually the team doing the work behind the scenes.
And maybe that’s the perfect setup for them heading into this season. No spotlight, no pressure, just a group that’s been there before and knows what it takes. If they can stay healthy and rediscover that 2023 magic, don’t be surprised if the so-called “dark horse” ends up charging all the way back to the Finals.
Because with The Joker leading the way, and players like Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon supporting, Denver’s never really out of the race.
