Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon did not practice Thursday as the Nuggets got back in the gym ahead of their NBA Cup home game against the Mavericks.
Gordon is still rehabbing from a right calf strain and is unlikely to play Friday (8 p.m. MT) after missing the last two weeks. Jokic remains with his family in Denver and has been away from the team for reasons he prefers to keep private at this time, according to a source. His official designation on team injury reports has been “personal reasons.”
Nuggets coach Michael Malone did not know as of Thursday afternoon whether Jokic would be available for the NBA Cup game.
“Definitely always touching base,” Malone said. “Not to be overbearing, but my job as a coach is to — I care about (Jokic’s wife) Natalija and their family. … So I’m constantly calling and texting and communicating with all of our guys to see how they’re doing and any updates (in a family-related absence). But not to the point where it’s overbearing. But yeah, communication is always helpful. Especially while guys are away from the team and out. And hopefully, we can get Nikola back as soon as possible.”
If Jokic does miss the next game, both teams’ Balkan superstars will be absent from a nationally televised contest that the league wants to advertise as being extra meaningful due to the in-season tournament stakes. Luka Doncic is set to miss at least one week with a right wrist injury, the Mavericks announced on Thursday.
Dario Saric has been replacing Jokic in the starting lineup at the five, while Peyton Watson has filled in at Gordon’s spot as the four. In 38 minutes together over the last three games, that starting unit — also featuring Jamal Murray, Christian Braun and Michael Porter Jr. — has kept up an impressive 11.5 net rating, mostly led by defense.
“This will be the most time (Gordon) has missed since I’ve been here,” Watson said Thursday. “I don’t think he’s ever missed this much time. And for a long time, I thought AG was bullet-proof. So it sucks not to have him, but when he gets back, we’ll just be focused on trying to get him back to the elite level he was playing at before.”
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Gordon was averaging 15.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.1 assists in seven games when he asked for a substitution in the first quarter of Denver’s game on Nov. 4. Most notably, he’s shooting 54.5% from 3-point range — outdone only by Jokic, who currently leads the league in 3-point percentage (56.4%), rebounds (13.7) and assists (11.7).
The Nuggets (8-5) went 1-2 on their recent road trip without Jokic, defeating Memphis in an NBA Cup game to improve to 1-1 in the group stage entering Friday’s game.
“I think for people to go out and say, ‘Oh, we’re gonna play the same no matter what,’ it’s foolish,” Watson said. “Because we run the ball through 15 (Jokic) every play down the court. So that’s kind of a huge, huge difference. So for us, mentality-wise, we have to be more aggressive. We have to be more willing to rely on each other.”