Jokic finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in a win over the Kings in Denver's first game without Malone

The Denver Nuggets made a rather surprising move this week when they fired head coach Michael Malone with just three games left in the regular season. The Nuggets are 48-32 on the year after beating the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night and are battling to see which playoff spot they'll have when the postseason begins.

Tony Jones, Sam Amick and Zach Powell of The Athletic reported that "league sources said there had been significant frustration within the locker room at how the Nuggets were playing, particularly defensively. The Nuggets were just 20th in defensive rating. Jokić has been frustrated with the team’s defensive commitment and performance this season."