All things considered, Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets are still a juggernaut in the 2025-26 NBA season, even though they just got shocked by the Chicago Bulls Monday night at Ball Arena in Denver.
The Nuggets dropped to 10-3 after suffering a 130-127 loss to the visiting Bulls, thus also snapping Denver's red-hot seven-game win streak. There is a case to be made that Denver could have been undefeated up to this point of the season, as all its losses to date had come down to the wire. Combined, those losses by the Nuggets were by only 11 points, including their 137-131 season-opening loss to the Golden State Warriors.
Better execution down the stretch and perhaps some luck could have made Denver a 13-0 team.
“We’ll learn from all three situations going forward,” Nuggets head coach David Adelman said of his team being 0-3 in the clutch this season (h/t Ryan Blackburn of Mile High City Sports).
“It’s good tape to watch, to learn from as a team. I have major belief in this group in the clutch. We’ll have more of these games and we’ll learn as we go.”
Against Chicago, the Nuggets found themselves down by as many as 18 points before mounting a spirited comeback attempt in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Denver, it ultimately fell short of completing a come-from-behind victory, with Bulls big man Nikola Vucevic hitting a clutch 3-pointer with a little over 30 seconds left in regulation to give Chicago a four-point lead.
Jokic paced the Nuggets with 36 points to go with 18 rebounds, while Jamal Murray had 34 points and 11 boards.
Looking ahead, Denver will try to bounce back right away on Wednesday versus the New Orleans Pelicans on the road.
