The Nuggets did so well for so long with Nikola Jokic sidelined, but somehow, the team has started struggling now that he’s back in the lineup. Part of it is just him shaking off the rust from his longest NBA absence and reacclimating, but something has looked off.
One theory was posited on a recent episode of the All-NBA Podcast by guest Jason Timpf, of The Volume Sports. He wondered aloud if the Nuggets have been playing poorly since Jokic’s return because the team got used to playing a completely different style of defense without Jokic and Jonas Valanciunas in the lineup.