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Will Nikola Jokic be suspended? Nuggets star fined for altercation with Jaden McDaniels in Game 4 originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Minnesota Timberwolves took a 3-1 series lead over the Denver Nuggets with a double-digit win on Saturday night, but the game was overshadowed by an altercation in the final seconds.
Wolves guard Jaden McDaniels scored a layup as the time expired, which didn't sit well with Nikola Jokic, who charged McDaniels and the rest of the Wolves bench. Jokic felt that McDaniels was show-boating by going for the bucket with the game already decided, so he got in McDaniels' face right in front of the Minnesota bench.
The Nuggets and Wolves have played in the playoffs in three of the last four years, so this presents as one of the hotter rivalries in the league. Since they have played so often, Denver and Minnesota have a familiarity with each other that is similar to many heated rivalries in league history.
However, this was perhaps the most heated moment between the two teams in that span, and it featured arguably the best player in the NBA. Jokic's actions also risk him being suspended for Game 5 as Denver is one loss away from elimination.
Here's the latest on how the NBA might view Jokic and McDaniels' altercation on Saturday night.
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Is Nikola Jokic suspended?
The NBA reviewed the scrum from Game 4, but decided to not suspend Jokic. Instead, the NBA fined the Nuggets star $50,000 for his role in the altercation, but Jokic will be able to play on Monday night.
The league investigated the situation on Sunday but determined that no discipline was necessary for the rest of the series.
Nikola Jokic interview
After the game, Jokic was asked about his actions at the end of the game, but the star center didn't have any regrets about what he did. Jokic said it was more about standing up for something he felt wasn't right than trying to ignite his team.
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Nikola Jokic-Jaden McDaniels altercation video
Jokic did not appreciate Jaden McDaniels' going for a layup with just a second left on the clock in Saturday night's Game 4, so he immediately approached the Timberwolves bench in a fury. That lead to a scrum between the two teams despite the game already being decided.
Nuggets-Timberwolves ejections
Only Nikola Jokic and Julius Randle were suspended from the game as they ended up in the middle of the scrum between the two teams. Since the scrum occurred on the Wolves bench, many of the Nuggets players weren't involved at the heat of the tension.
Will there be other suspensions?
The NBA didn't suspend any player for the Game 4 scrum. Instead, the league fined Jokic $50,000 and Julius Randle $35,000 after the two players were ejected from the game.
Other players who could also be at risk of suspension included Randle, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert from the Timberwolves side. Additionally, Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon left the bench in the altercation, which put him at risk of suspension before the NBA decided otherwise.
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