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Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić knows what his team’s weakness is.
The Nuggets fell 102-87 to the Oklahoma City Thunder in their season opener on Thursday, and shooting was a major issue. Denver went 35-of-98 from the field and just 7-of-38 from three-point range.
Following the game, Jokić expressed that outside of Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray, the team is not replete with great shooters.
“We are not a good shooting team, I think, except probably (Michael Porter Jr.) and Jamal (Murray),” Jokić said, per Sam Amick of The Athletic. “All of us are kind of streaky. Not streaky, you know, but just average shooters.”
Nuggets coach Michael Malone said that shooting was a concern of his heading into the season but that the team is not worried at such an early juncture.
“I don’t think there’s any need for panic,” Malone said, per Amick. “Going into the season, shooting is a concern of mine. You know, you lose a guy like KCP, who was a 40 percent 3-point shooter, you know what I mean? And I thought Christian Braun was great tonight. Again, Christian Braun is not going to be KCP, so I think we all have to understand that, which I think we do, and embrace CB for who he is. I thought he played really good defense, competed, ran the floor. …No, there’s no panic.”
Jokić himself had a strong day, scoring 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting while also adding 13 rebounds and 12 assists.
Murray went 4-of-13 on field goals while Porter Jr. went 5-of-17 and Russell Westbrook was 2-of-10 from the bench.
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