Michael Malone conceded he is worried by the Denver Nuggets' form after Thursday's 126-114 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. (More Sports News)
Jokic's haul of 27 points, 20 rebounds and 11 assists saw him move onto 139 career triple-doubles; he is now third on the all-time list, behind Oscar Robertson (181) and teammate Russell Westbrook (200), having surpassed Magic Johnson
Michael Malone conceded he is worried by the Denver Nuggets' form after Thursday's 126-114 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. (More Sports News)
Nikola Jokic recorded a triple-double, but could not propel Denver to victory, with the Nuggets now 11-9 for the season, having lost five of their last six games in the league.
Jokic's haul of 27 points, 20 rebounds and 11 assists saw him move onto 139 career triple-doubles; he is now third on the all-time list, behind Oscar Robertson (181) and teammate Russell Westbrook (200), having surpassed Magic Johnson.
While Malone credited Jokic, he is concerned by his team's performances.
"We just got our butts kicked," Malone said.
"Obviously, I love Nikola, and I feel very fortunate to coach a player with his talent and he'll go down as one of the best to ever do it.
"I'm happy to hear that [he is third for triple-doubles], I really am. But I'm so much more concerned about our team right now and where we're at.
"It's not so much that we lost tonight. I knew coming in here would be a tall order. I just don't like how we lost and there is a big difference."
Malone is also wary of putting too much pressure on Jokic.
"We've all got to make sure we don't run him into the ground," he added.
Jokic said the achievement was not something he is too focused on right now.
He said: "It's something that you're probably going to look at after you finish your career.
"Right now, you don't even think about it. But it's a great thing. It's really nice."
Donovan Mitchell led the Cavs with 28 points, as Cleveland improved to 13-1 at home for the season.
"That's a hard team to slow down," said Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson, who was particularly impressed with how his team dealt with Jokic despite the Serbian's high-scoring game.
"We made [Jokic] work, get his efficiency down.
"When Jokic kills you is when he has those 15, 17 assist games. Not that we wanted him to score whatever he scored, but you have to pick your poison.
"A lot of those points [Jokic scored] were in transition, and that's one of their elite attributes. We didn't do a great job there but we were better in the second half."