Coach Gregg Popovich admired the talent of Nikola Jokic and also expressed his powerlessness when San Antonio Spurs lost the match.
The San Antonio Spurs needed to beat the Denver Nuggets to find a chance to compete in the Playoffs, but they didn’t do it. To lose with a score of 126-132, Spurs fell behind the Memphis Grizzlies and the Portland Trail Blazers in the race to the top 9. The huge cause of this year’s result at Nikola Jokic.
Serbian striker scored a total of 25 points, 11 assists, contributed to the victory of the Pepsi Center team. Today Jokic does not rebound as much as usual, only 4 times catch the ball turned on the board. But that was enough for coach Gregg Popovich to complain.
“I think the NBA should make a new rule: banning kicking and rebounding,” San Antonio Spurs coach teased the press after the match. “He just throws the ball up 2-3 times, holds the ball and holds the basket. That’s not luck. His unique move.”
The brightest star of the Nuggets this match is Michael Porter Jr. with 30 points and 15 rebounds, in which he scored 10 of the first 16 points of the home team. This is the second consecutive match Porter scored at least 30 points. The 22-year-old talent also praised the Serbian teammate:
“If you know me well, you must know that the Denver Nuggets chose me to own a real scorer. They know it’s one of my strongest points. It’s easy to play next to a superstar tends to pass the ball. That works for both of us”.
Denver sometimes led 12 points in the first half of the match, but lost the game and almost got the opponent creating a 2-digit gap. However, the students of coach Michael Malone found the rhythm in the middle of the fourth quarter and the 13-4 score sequence to help them ensure the 45th victory of the season.
On the other side of the line, Rudy Gay scored 24 points, while Derrick White contributed 23 points and 7 assists. Spurs are still 10th, but the gap with the top 9 has increased by 1 game. Meanwhile, they and the team behind New Orleans Pelicans are having the same record of 29 wins – 38 losses.