MILWAUKEE — Two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic won’t play for the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night at Milwaukee as he continues to recover from a tight left hamstring.
This will be the third game in the past four that Jokic has missed. After sitting out two games, Jokic returned Tuesday and had 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 99-98 victory at New Orleans.
Jokic has recorded a triple-double in each of the past four games he has played.
Nuggets coach Michael Malone said Jamal Murray (left knee), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (sprained right wrist) and Michael Porter Jr. (personal reasons) also won’t play Wednesday. This will be the third straight game Porter has missed.
Jokic, Murray, Caldwell-Pope, Porter and Bones Hyland (sprained left finger) all had been listed as questionable on the Nuggets’ injury report. Malone says Hyland’s status for the Bucks game remains uncertain.
The Bucks will be missing Bobby Portis and rookie MarJon Beauchamp.
Portis will miss a game for the first time this season after spraining his right medial collateral ligament and right wrist in a 150-130 victory at Detroit on Monday. The Bucks said he will be reevaluated in two weeks.
Beauchamp is out with right knee soreness.