Jokic in jeopardy of missing 4th straight game on Friday vs. Mavericks

After playing in the Nuggets’ first ten games of the season and leading the team to a 7-3 record, Nikola Jokic has now missed three straight games due to personal reasons. Jokic is with his family, celebrating the birth of his first son and second child. He didn’t travel on the team’s road trip to New Orleans and Memphis.

But now the team is back home to host the Mavericks on Friday night at 8 PM MT. The team managed to go 1-2 without the Joker, starting the trip with two ugly losses and finishing strongly with an impressive win in Memphis on Tuesday.

Jokic listed as questionable for Friday night

Many had speculated that Jokic would rejoin the team once they returned to Denver, but so far that has not been the case. He was not spotted at practice on Thursday and is officially listed as questionable for the game against Dallas on Friday.

At this point, it feels safe to assume that Jokic will just be questionable until he is actually back with the team. There is no reason for concern and no indication that anything has gone wrong; by all accounts, Jokic and his family are fine and healthy.

This is just a case of a new father taking as much time as possible to bask in the birth of his child and enjoy some well-earned time with his family. It wouldn’t be surprising if Jokic returns to the team and plays on Friday, but it also wouldn’t be surprising if he continues to miss time to be with his family.

Jokic’s absence a gift and curse

The Nuggets have obviously struggled without the league’s best player, but this may actually be a good thing for the team in the long run. They’ve generally been a disaster without the Joker and that needs to change. 

In a way, this is a blessing in disguise. Now the Nuggets have this opportunity to play together and grow as a team in relatively low-pressure games. So, Jokic should take as much time as he wants and allow Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. to find themselves and become team leaders.

They are going to be able to have to survive some meaningful minutes without Jokic at some point. It’s better for them to learn now and go through some growing pains than to do it on the fly when the games are more meaningful.