CHICAGO (670 The Score) – The Bulls failed to capitalize after the defending champion Nuggets lost their star and encountered adversity Tuesday evening.
Chicago lost 114-106 to Denver after Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, a two-time league MVP, was controversially ejected late in the second quarter. Shortly after verbally expressing frustration about a no-call, Jokic was ejected by official Mousa Dagher with 1:08 remaining in the first half upon receiving his first and only technical foul, a rarely seen occurrence.
Jokic was ejected because he “directed profane language at the official that by our standards warranted an ejection,” crew chief Mark Lindsay said in a pool report after the game. When asked, Lindsay didn’t answer if Jokic received a warning and also didn’t state exactly what Jokic said. Jokic yelled "mother******" at the official, the Denver Post reported.
“I crossed the line, but sometimes that word doesn’t cross the line,” Jokic said. “It is what it is.
“Sometimes it’s not even a technical. But I crossed the line. I understand. But sometimes, that word doesn’t cross the line.”
In another rarely seen occurrence, the home crowd expressed its disapproval of an opposing player being ejected. As Jokic, a native of Serbia, left the floor, boos rained down from the United Center.
For years, Jokic has received a tremendous amount of love in Chicago, which has one of the world’s biggest Serbian populations.
“It’s the second-biggest Serbian population,” Jokic said. “Belgrade is the first, and Chicago is the second. So maybe they came to see me.”
Even the Bulls themselves had sympathy for Jokic. Chicago center Nikola Vucevic, who had 26 points and 16 rebounds, didn’t believe his friend Jokic’s ejection was warranted.
“The ejection to me seemed excessive,” Vucevic said. “Sure, the tech, whatever. But I think the ejection was a little bit too much for what happened.”
The Nuggets led 54-48 when Jokic was ejected, and they never relinquished that lead. The Bulls pulled within 57-54 early in the third quarter, but the Nuggets soon stretched their lead to 16 by the middle of the period as they were led by point guard Reggie Jackson (25 points), forward Michael Porter Jr. (17 points) and reserve guard Julian Strawther (16 points). Beyond Jokic's unavailability in the second half, the Nuggets played the entire game without star guard Jamal Murray, who had an ankle injury.
The Bulls (9-16) led for just 19 seconds Tuesday, an advantage they held briefly in the first quarter. They played without star guard Zach LaVine (foot) and guard Alex Caruso (ankle).
Vucevic thought the Bulls “relaxed a little bit” once Jokic was ejected. Chicago shot just 41.9% and committed 14 turnovers. Bulls guard Coby White led all scorers with 27 points.
“It was right there (for the taking),” Vucevic said. “In the second half, they took it to us. From there, it was just difficult to get back in the game. Even though they missed Jokic, there are still a lot of players that are part of that championship team that know what it takes.”
Cody Westerlund is an editor for 670TheScore.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.