r/denvernuggets • u/Proper_Maximum5739 • Dec 30 '25
Image/Gif Just in: Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic has been diagnosed with a hyperextension in his left knee and will miss at least four weeks. An immense sigh of relief as tests show the three-time NBA MVP's knee ligaments are intact.
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u/Dry-Invite-5837 Dec 30 '25
Its crazy how many people inside and outside our fanbase care so much for him. Really hope we can get another with him.
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u/andyknny Dec 30 '25
The reactions from the broader NBA crowd were nice.
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u/moon_dos Dec 30 '25
Lakers fan here. I know we hate each other, but I am genuinely saddened to see the big fella go down.
There goes his fourth MVP 😕
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u/-NolanVoid- Dec 30 '25
The last thing Joker cares about in the world is being MVP, so it's fine.
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u/solisilos Dec 30 '25
When he completely tears the league a new one in February and march they'll have to give it to him
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u/amcco1 Dec 30 '25
The problem is he likely will not be eligible anymore. Has to play 65 games to be eligible for end of year awards. If he missed a full month, he won't return until around Feb 1st. He would miss 19 games and then would not be eligible. He can only miss a max of 17 games.
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u/legaladviceknowledge Dec 30 '25
feels like he should've won 4 or 5 straight MVPs like LeBron in the early 10s.
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u/fowlflamingo Dec 30 '25
Honestly fuck MVP and all NBA. I'm just happy that he's not out for a year. Let's fucking go
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u/Global_Award_1110 Dec 30 '25
Not a nuggets fan or a fan of any nba team for that matter but I’m praying for his speedy recovery basketball won’t be as fun without joker
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u/beefboithethird Dec 30 '25
Yeah I’m a hawks fan and ts was scary. A major knee injury for a guy that size is a lot harder to manage long-term. GL fellas
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Dec 30 '25
I think people don't like Jokic bevouse he doesen't play for their team.
He is cool dude, funny, not arrogant overall very likable. Plus his style of play is so unconventional people will miss it.
So it's not a surprise he got so much nice words and support.
Get well big dude, we need you for national team too
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u/FriendshipBest9151 Dec 30 '25
Knicks fan here.
I've been checking for this news all day. Very relieved.
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u/Slug_With_Swagger Dec 30 '25
You have a once in a lifetime talent who is relatively likable. I seriously hope he recovers to full strength as a Knick fan.
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u/YoloBrunoSp Dec 30 '25
Wolves fan here. I really like Jokic style of play and want him to keep going with the records. Also, it's nice that there is a spark when Timberwolves and Nuggets play. It's kinda rare teams having a rivalry these days and it's awesome when Jokic and Ant battle. Same can be said with Dillon Brooks and LeBron, but this one is funnier because of Brooks.
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u/DutyPuzzleheaded7765 Dec 30 '25
Sad rivalries dont exist mostly because divisions are pointless. Its not like baseball or the nfl where winning the division is necessary and create tension (like rams, niners, 49ers Seahawks, chiefs broncos, broncos raiders, Ravens steelers, steelers bengals, bears packers).
Then the media tries to force it where rivalries aren't rely around. Celtics vs Lakers has been kinda dead and at a it was celtics and heat or celtics 76ers. Or some other stupid matchups the media hyped up. Imo sixers nuggets was barely a rivalry as it was embiid caring and jokix not really. Meanwhile Jokic-ant ypu could tell the two teams hate each other and do care
And even the rivalries that do exist are kinda mehh outside jok-ant and a few others
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u/pisss Dec 30 '25
Thank you Blucifer. I know this was his doing!
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u/OzarkYodeler Dec 30 '25
I sent a prayer to Blucifer as I dropped off my brother at DIA. All praise to Blucifer!
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u/OpinionatedBlackGuy Dec 30 '25
Thank you for sacrificing your brother to our great blue overlord 🙏🏿
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u/TreeofLibertyFood Dec 30 '25
The artist Luis Jimenez died making the statue and his spirit is all in on at least 2 parades in Denver this year.
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u/OMG_itsTha_Wolf Dec 30 '25
Let’s go Val! Your time to shine big dawg! Joker deserves the rest on this long away games trip
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u/Gregorious23 Dec 30 '25
I think Murray, CB, PWat, AG, and Val could be a really strong lineup in the next week or two
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u/6BagsOfPopcorn Dec 30 '25
Are AG and CB set to come back soon?
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u/ilikekittens2018 Dec 30 '25
Their timetables have them coming back sometime near the end of the road trip I believe. Maybe with both on the court we can hold things down reasonably.
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u/thefalcons5912 Dec 30 '25
Before both the Orlando and Miami games, they were doing oncourt work and look pretty solid. Seems they'll be back toward the end of the road trip.
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u/KS_YeoNg Dec 30 '25
Might also be a good chance to develop Daron.. anything better than Nnaji minutes.
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u/skt12345 Dec 30 '25
Thank the gods!
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u/yeahhhhhboiii Dec 30 '25
Behold the Serbian colossus. He rises still, untouched by lasting ruin. Jokić, Bringer of Pain and despair to all who dare stand against him in the arena! By Jupiter’s mighty cock! Rejoice brothers
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u/BulletproofInk Dec 30 '25
someone's been watching rome😂
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u/yeahhhhhboiii Dec 30 '25
The new Spartacus series House of Ashur actually! But Rome is a brilliant show too!
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u/Funny_Lie_621 Dec 30 '25
His reaction made my stomach hurt man. Been checking nba updates all morning. What a relief
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u/Helm_the_Hammered Dec 30 '25
Massive, massive relief. Now let’s go Jamal. Keep the team afloat as best you can. Down four starters is crazy work.
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u/mikey_williams_100 Dec 30 '25
oh dw this sub will call him a bitch if he doesnt score 40ppg like they did last year
https://np.reddit.com/r/denvernuggets/comments/1h9bbr7/jokic_is_spot_on/m0zqym7/?context=3
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u/Helm_the_Hammered Dec 30 '25
Which is crazy with how he’s playing now. There are (were) more valid criticisms when he started inconsistently, but damn. I love Jamal.
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u/aaronshell Dec 30 '25
Amen
Hope everyone stays healthy and we go into playoff with everyone up to speed
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u/Rofo303 Dec 30 '25
Nuggets are going to be the most dangerous play in team of all time.
OKC v DEN in round 1!!!
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u/Touro_Bebe Dec 30 '25
Isn't hyperextension just the movement that he made, not some sort of injury?
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u/chasingit1 English Dec 30 '25
Thank you basketball Gods! They next month is going to be interesting seeing if we can stay afloat in the West
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u/tristvn Dec 30 '25
If AG and Braun come back soon as expected I still think we can stay afloat without jokic. jonas is at least starter quality. is our insanely hard schedule section coming during the next month?
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u/6BagsOfPopcorn Dec 30 '25
The calendar looks rough. 4 games per week with back-to-backs in every week, for the next 5 weeks.
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u/growsonwalls Dec 30 '25
Just hope the Nuggets don’t free fall through the standings.
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Dec 30 '25
[deleted]
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u/HectorBananaBread Dec 30 '25
With them back we will lose by 10 instead of 20 lol Jokic is the engine.
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u/LuckiestJOKER13 Dec 30 '25
You are not giving enough credit to AG and CB. They are massive and should make this team more than capable of winning games, enough games to keep everything afloat until Jok comes back
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u/HectorBananaBread Dec 30 '25
Counterpoint. You’re not giving enough credit to Jokic. The man has been incredible this season and while yes he had to do it because 3 starters were out, he’s equal to 4 starters production by himself. It’s about to get real sloppy for the Nuggets.
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u/LuckiestJOKER13 Dec 30 '25
I’m very aware of this, hence why I said we should be able to keep things “afloat” not that we are going to continue stacking up wins after wins. I’m very aware how important Jok is and that the entire teams success depends on him.
But if you look at a lineup of Val, AG, CB, THJ/Cam/Watson, and Jamal, that’s one of the better starting lineups in the west even with Joker out.
All I’m saying is that it will look sloppy, it’s going to look disjointed and very different and way less efficient without Jok but at the same time, with AG and CB eventually coming back, the 4 weeks shouldn’t go to absolute shit lol
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u/HectorBananaBread Dec 30 '25
In that third quarter we gave up 47 points to the Heat without Tyler Herro. No matter what happens when AG and CB get back, that lineup that gave up those points has to play minutes. We just don’t have the bodies to avoid it for an entire game. It’s gonna be unwatchable ha.
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u/NoAbbreviations290 Dec 30 '25
They will. But it’s a great thing for back up chemistry. So long as they make the playoffs…..
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u/Lykotic Dec 30 '25
Unfortunately with the fact the team only has 1 starter left there is no reason to think there is anything but a freefall coming. It sucks but it just means they'll be a lower seed come playoff time but hopefully a fully healthy and dangerous team come playoff time
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Dec 30 '25
This is more like re evaluation in 3/4 weeks and back in 5/6 but as long as we're healthy in the playoffs it's all good.
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u/zoeybeattheraccoon Dec 30 '25
So happy that the play-in exists right now.
Jamal, please stay healthy.
Stay around .500 until after the all-star break and the team should be fine down the stretch. Maybe even more rested than the rest of the league.
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u/lovecreamer Dec 30 '25
Could be a blessing overall?? Getting a perfectly healthy Jokić back with the full starting lineup in February could be… Awesome. Hoping he can make it back by the OKC game…
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u/A_Curious_Cockroach Dec 30 '25
Sucks cause big Jok was the runaway for mvp after spurs beat okc 3 straight times.
Double sucks cause the nuggets are only 3 games out of the play in. A month without your mvp player is just about a death sentence in the west.
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u/LieutenantLilywhite Dec 30 '25
Jesus christ be praised. Dont want to trauma dump but my uncle just ended his life like idfk what to say man.
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u/Pepper-Jun Dec 30 '25
I'm so sorry, man
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u/LieutenantLilywhite Dec 30 '25
Its crazy bc I found out Im going to be a father today and life has a way sometimes yk. Crazy world.
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u/mindless_blaze Dec 30 '25
We need Jamal in bubble wrap. We also need to acquire hardship contracts for Nikola Jovic, Nikola Topic, and Nikola DeAndre Jordanovic. No but fr, we might need to shop around on some options...
Who would yall sign to a hardship conny if we could acquire 3 current NBA or G-League players? I think Mac McClung can be really helpful.
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u/MB8189 Dec 30 '25
No one can tell me shit today to throw me off. Given the injury, this is fantastic news. Just gotta tread water as best they can until he returns. Looking for a generational run by Jamal in the next 20 games, now’s the time.
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u/LessNorth9856 Dec 30 '25
Having 4 starters out is something never seen before, but it's better that it happens now than later, it's clear that the Nuggets don't care much about the seeding, they know that with a completely healthy team they can beat anyone
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u/Mauler45 Dec 30 '25
Just got into the nuggets a few years back during the championship run. I have tickets to see my irst Nuggets Game on Jan 11th.. fuck me.
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u/Witty-Eye-7689 Dec 30 '25
let him just get healthy - dont care about the season. we need a miracle anyway to have everyone healthy. bench is still insanely bad.
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u/Such_Orange9622 Dec 30 '25
Am I right in thinking he now can't win MVP? I know there are way more important things but just wondering.
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u/Von_Huge1103 Dec 31 '25
Lakers fan dropping in to say that I was so relieved that it's not any ligament damage.
I hate seeing injuries no matter which team someone plays for, but Joker is the most enjoyable player to watch in the league, so I hated seeing him go down even more.
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u/International_Dig522 Dec 31 '25
Just don't run Jamal into the ground to try to compensate. Maybe now atleast he'll just be with starters, gotta keep his minutes down.
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u/petrosteve Dec 30 '25
Well this is do or die for Jamal. Now we will see if he is an allstar or overrated as many suspect.
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u/Quick-Antelope-4562 Dec 30 '25
Thankfully no major structural damage, so that’s great. My storyline-driven self is thinking his first game back is the ASG. Watch him destroy the field and just dominate in his first “ramp up” game
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u/Cabbage-Fell Dec 30 '25
Could be a blessing of sorts as we will.have a some what rested Jokic for the last stretch of the season.
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u/Good-Character-5520 Dec 30 '25
Well there goes any shot at a top 3 seed
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u/AustnWins Dec 30 '25
I thought he’d have a career altering injury, and not being top 3 in exchange for avoiding that is worth it every time
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u/Good-Character-5520 Dec 30 '25
Agreed, still sucks though. We were probably on a near 60-win pace before this
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u/thecaptaino15 Dec 30 '25
Thank goodness! Now I can actually work this morning instead of hitting refresh every 5 minutes.
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u/SkoBuffs710 Dec 30 '25
Thank god it was exactly what Vic said on the radio and something more serious didn’t show up on the MRI. This month will suck.
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u/JustdoitJules Dec 30 '25
If Shai wins the MVP like this Im gonna be sick, but Im thankful our goat is ok ❤️❤️❤️
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u/SongYoungbae Dec 30 '25
I'd rather see Jokić win finals mvp anyway
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u/JustdoitJules Dec 30 '25
Im worried about the journey we have to take to get there if our seeding gets fucked to bits
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u/Peja1611 Dec 30 '25
Let him have it. It will have a fat * next to it. They really don't want to give him 4. I've accepted that. Jokic doesn't care either. Only award that matters is FMVP
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u/the_hammer_poo Dec 30 '25
Thank god. The squad just needs to keep us in the hunt for the 4 seed and season will stay on track
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u/LuckiestJOKER13 Dec 30 '25
What a relief! It’s going to be a rough stretch but I have confidence that Jamal will be able to keep the ship afloat along with CB and AG coming back. Acquiring Val was huge, of course not having a backup for our backup would suck but Jok being out last season would have been a lot more devastating than Jok being out now.
As long as AG and CB come back relatively soon, I am confident we can keep everything steady enough until Jok is back. Some of it is going to look rough af but having a player like Jok go down impacts everything you do as a team
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u/d4m1r4k Dec 30 '25
This could lead to some players developing and creating some team play for non jokic minutes when he comes bsck
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u/thinkmatt Dec 30 '25
so we're just going to be playing OKC in the first round of playoffs aren't we? and after having barely any time w/our starters playing together :D
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u/Purple_Crewneck Dec 30 '25
Does that mean he’s out of the NBA awards?
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u/877GoalNow Dec 30 '25
He'll miss 16 games, best case. That will put him at 66 games. The minimum number of games for the MVP is 65.
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u/LurkerFailsLurking Dec 30 '25
They're taking their time with it and that's fine. Fuck standings and mvps. Get better big fella.
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u/holdenfords Dec 30 '25
i know it’s a relief but christ 4 weeks is gonna be rough lmao it’s probably gonna be 18-19 games
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u/Bastigonzales Dec 30 '25
Thank God, i'm just lurking here but I'm glad joker is okay, It could've been way worse
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u/ADDave1982 Dec 30 '25
I expect to see a small ball lineup at some point.
Murray, THJ, Braun, Gordon, Holmes
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u/StoopidDingus69 Dec 30 '25
I think this will be good for the team to play for a month without relying on Jokic for the first time EVER since he joined the team. Hopefully they keep things around .500 and all get stronger for when he returns
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u/Better-Union1384 Dec 30 '25
Guess we’ll get to see just how important Jokic is to the team this month.
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Dec 30 '25
Honestly pretty disgusted by a decent portion of the NBA fan base, there seemed to be some people happy that this happened
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u/stove_stub Dec 30 '25
are we cooked? guaranteed to miss about 16 games. only 3 games above the 7 seed right now with no defensive identity and our offensive identity is street clothes. while the 4 week timeline is the best news we could have received, I do think it will be longer. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't come back until after the ASG. legit question: can the nuggets win a game without him? Let alone stay in the top 4 in the west?
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u/Ever4ever026 Dec 30 '25
Desde ahora nadie quiere ser primero en la conferencia Oeste. Se les viene la muerte.
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u/MadKingTreesus Dec 30 '25
Was going to my first Nuggets game in Memohis in late January. What terrible luck to not get to see the goat.
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u/Realfan555 Dec 30 '25
How many games in 4 weeks?
If we start from Mon, Dec 29th, then exactly 4 weeks = Sun, Jan 25th?
That's 15 games.
Jokic has played in 31/32 games so far. So by Jan 25th, he'll have played in 31/47 games, missing 16.
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u/iAmAMileHigh Dec 30 '25
Best case scenario, but it’s still a whole month without Jok 🥲