CHICAGO — Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic was ejected with 1:08 remaining in the second quarter of Tuesday night’s 114-106 win over the Chicago Bulls.
After missing a shot at the rim, Jokic yelled toward official Mousa Dagher looking for a foul call while jogging back up the floor to get back on defense. He was given a technical foul and immediately ejected from the game, drawing boos from the Chicago crowd.
“Call the foul, motherf—er,” Jokic yelled, multiple people sitting along the baseline told ESPN.
Crew chief Mark Lindsay said via the pool report after the game that “Jokic was ejected after one technical foul because he directed profane language at the official that by our standards warranted an ejection.”
Jokic acknowledged his language “crossed a line,” but both he and Nuggets coach Michael Malone were surprised it led to an immediate ejection.
“Sometimes it’s not even a technical,” Jokic said of calling an official that word. “I crossed the line, I understand, but sometimes that word doesn’t cross the line. It is what it is.”
Added Malone: “I think everybody was surprised it was a one-tech toss. Again, I didn’t hear exactly what was said. Unfortunate, but we won the game and that’s all that matters.”
Jokic almost certainly had some extra fans in attendance Tuesday night in Chicago. The Bulls offered a group ticket package and were expecting a large contingent of Serbian fans, according to Bulls public relations. Tuesday marked Jokic’s only visit to the United Center this regular season. Jokic, who is from Sombor, Serbia, said he was not aware of any special promotion but did point out Chicago was home to a large Serbian population.
“It’s the second-biggest Serbian population here,” he said. “Belgrade [Serbia] is the first, and Chicago is the second. So, maybe they came to see me.”
Jokic finished with 4 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists in 16 minutes, only the second time this season he has scored fewer than 10 points. The other was Nov. 20 against Detroit, when he also was ejected. Yet, Denver has held on to win both games this season in which Jokic has been ejected.
The Nuggets’ win Tuesday was even more impressive considering they were also without Jamal Murray, who missed the second night of a back-to-back, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who missed the second half because of a head contusion. Reggie Jackson scored 25 points, and Denver got 50 points from its bench.
“I’m starting to think [Jokic is] overrated,” Malone said with a laugh. “But I think our young guys, they’re in a rhythm, they have some confidence and they’re playing more and more aggressively, which is fun to watch.”
Jokic joined Draymond Green and Jalen Duren as the only players to be ejected from multiple games this season. Green was ejected for a third time this season later Tuesday night during the Warriors’ loss to the Phoenix Suns.
The Nuggets were able to escape Tuesday with a victory, but Malone warned against Jokic making a habit of battling with officials.
“Maybe I have to do a better job because if he’s getting fouled or he thinks he’s getting fouled, let me take the tech,” Malone said. “That’s my job as a head coach because I don’t want him being put in that position where he is getting thrown out, because it’s not good for him and more importantly it’s not good for the team.
“We can talk all along about how great our bench was tonight, but in the big picture, we need Nikola available. He knows that, and we just have to work on how we engage and how we communicate with the referees and handle that frustration.”
