Jokic gets hurt late in 1st half, Heat pull away from there to top Nuggets

MIAMI — Norman Powell scored 25 points and the Miami Heat pulled distant successful the 2nd fractional to bushed Denver 147-123 successful a crippled wherever the Nuggets saw superstar Nikola Jokic limp disconnected the tribunal with a genu injury.

The teams were tied astatine 63 astatine halftime, with Jokic getting wounded with astir 3 seconds near earlier the intermission. Miami past scored 47 third-quarter points to instrumentality afloat control.

Nikola Jovic scored 22 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 20 and Bam Adebayo returned from a two-game lack to drawback 10 rebounds for the Heat, who had gone 1-15 successful their past 16 games against Denver — the 1 triumph coming successful five-game decision to the Nuggets successful the 2023 NBA Finals.

Denver had besides won the past 11 regular-season matchups betwixt the clubs and hadn’t mislaid a crippled successful Miami since 2018.

But everything changed aft halftime, with Jokic remaining successful the locker country areas for evaluation.

Jokic inactive led the Nuggets successful scoring with 21 points, on with 8 assists and 5 rebounds. Jamal Murray scored 20 for Denver and Spencer Jones — who stepped connected Jokic’s near ft connected the play wherever the three-time MVP was injured — scored 16 for the Nuggets, arsenic did Tim Hardaway Jr.

Jokic was unsocial nether the handbasket and appeared to measurement guardant to assistance Denver’s Spencer Jones support a thrust by Miami’s Jaime Jaquez Jr. arsenic clip was astir to expire successful the 2nd quarter. While backtracking, Jones stepped connected Jokic’s near ft and it seemed the center’s genu buckled.

Jokic collapsed to the court, grabbing astatine the genu and writhing successful pain.

The Heat topped the 140-point people for the eighth clip successful the 2025 calendar year. Miami had 7 specified games from its inception successful 1988 done 2024, combined.

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