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By Ricardo Sandoval
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Denver Nuggets saw their chances at a second championship this season seem dim as we approach the new calendar year.
On Monday night, Nuggets superstar center Nikola Jokic suffered what appeared to be a severe knee injury against the Miami Heat, and on Tuesday, that was confirmed to be the case.
ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania shared that Jokic has been diagnosed with a hyperextension in his left knee and will miss at least four weeks.
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The three-time NBA MVP will miss at least a month of action after teammate Spencer Jones backed into him on a defensive possession. After the collision, Jokic fell to the floor in pain, grabbing his left knee and lying on the hardwood for several minutes.
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The 30-year-old Serbian superstar has been known for his durability. Since entering the league in 2015, Jokic has played in over 70 games in nine of his 11 seasons and has played in under 70 games only one time (he played in 69 games during the 2022-23 season).
With Jokic set to miss significant time, the Nuggets are in a deep hole. Not only will their best player and arguably the best player in the league miss time, but they are still without three other starters, including Christian Braun (ankle), Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and forward Cameron Johnson (knee contusion). Johnson is out for at least the next four weeks.
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The slightly good news for the Nuggets is that they are expected to have both Braun and Gordon back in the lineup within the next week, possibly after their seven-game road trip.
Denver is in the thick of the Western Conference race, sitting with a 22-10 record, which is good for the third seed in the loaded conference. It will be a tough battle for the Nuggets, as they will be without their franchise cornerstone for a significant time. Jokic does it all for the Nuggets, being the engine of their offense, and has been making them perennial contenders for the past handful of seasons.
In the season, Jokic was well on his way to possibly winning his fourth MVP of his career, averaging 29.1 points per game, 12.2 rebounds, 11.0 assists and 1.4 steals in 32 games this season.
Some of the notable games on Denver's schedule without Jokic in the lineup include tilts against the 20-10 Los Angeles Lakers on Jan. 20, the 24-8 Detroit Pistons on Jan 27, and the 28-5 Oklahoma City Thunder on Feb. 1. With 50 games left in the season, the Nuggets have the second-toughest schedule remaining in the season.
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