Nuggets center Nikola Jokic said he doesn't expect to be sanctioned by the NBA for leaving the bench area during a scuffle in Denver's game Wednesday at Utah.
Jokic was one of about a half-dozen Nuggets players who walked along the baseline toward an altercation under the basket between teammate Mason Plumlee and Jazz forward Derrick Favors in the first quarter. Plumlee and Favors were ejected.
Derrick Favors and Mason Plumlee were ejected after sparking an altercation on the court following a foul on the floor.
— ESPN (@espn) January 24, 2019
Nikola Jokic came off the bench and down the baseline, but didn’t get involved. pic.twitter.com/2QnsvjcEpA
Jokic seemed to believe that the out-of-bounds area isn't, well, out of bounds when it comes to such incidents.
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"I was not on the court." he said, per the Deseret News.
Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic says he’s not concerned about hearing from the league office about potentially stepping on the court during the first quarter altercation. “I was not on the court,” he said. pic.twitter.com/7Sh6QDgdJK
— Eric Woodyard (@E_Woodyard) January 24, 2019
He wasn't inbounds, but he was on the hardwood, and given how far he wandered out of his seat, the league could suspend him and the others — a group that includes starting point guard Jamal Murray — one game each for joining in an altercation when not in the game.
If Jokic is forced to sit, Denver might luck out on the timing. Its next contest is Friday vs. the Suns, who have the worst record in the Western Conference.
Jokic, 23, leads the Nuggets in scoring (19.8 per game) and rebounding (10.3 per game). He posted 28 points and 21 boards Wednesday in Denver's 114-108 loss.
