Listen, I get it. Going without watching Nikola Jokić suit up for the Denver Nuggets for four weeks is long enough. You don't want to think about not seeing him play for five, six, seven, or dare I say eight weeks. You probably read four weeks and breathed a sigh of relief, as did everyone in Colorado, Serbia, and around the NBA, but the key word is re-evaluated.
Jokić will be re-evaluated in four weeks, which doesn't mean he'll be cleared to play then. If he is cleared to play, then great, but even then, there'd be a ramp-up period, so it's not like he'd be cleared one afternoon and suit up to play the following night. Even Jokić isn't that powerful.
The next four weeks until he is re-evaluated may feel more like three months, but the Nuggets won't rush him back. Returning sooner than he should could result in a serious injury, which could put his status for the playoffs in jeopardy.
Denver is already lucky enough that Monday's injury isn't worse than it looked. We'll all get to see Jokić back on the court this season, and about 20 hours ago, that's not what most thought.
Jokić will be re-evaluated in four weeks after knee injury
His injury is worrisome for several reasons, the biggest being that, as of now, the Nuggets are down four starters. Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun traveled with the team on the road trip and could return. As exciting as that is, it's impossible to replace the Jokić-sized void. The non-Jokić minutes are challenging enough when he takes a breather on the bench.
Denver will play around 15 games before he's re-evaluated, and if he ends up missing two additional weeks, fans may not see him again until after the All-Star break. At least the front office turned Dario Šarić into Jonas Valančiūnas over the offseason.
These next several weeks will test the Nuggets in a way that they hoped wouldn't happen, but at least they will (hopefully) come out of the other side better for it. Everything changes when you can't rely on Jokić. The depth they didn't have in the past couple of years will be put to the test, even more so than it already has been.
As for Jokić, he'll get some unexpected rest. We're trying to look for the silver linings here. Hopefully, in four weeks, fans will get some good news as he progresses toward returning to the court.