Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic is facing a tough collection of big men in the NBA, but no matchup is probably more interesting than former teammate and now Portland Trail Blazer, Jusuf Nurkic.

The two versatile titans were envisioned to create a formidable one-two punch in the Nuggets' frontcourt, but the team just couldn't figure out how to do it properly. The lane constantly got clogged and no one was able to play to their potential when they are both on the floor.

As a result, Nurkic was slowly pushed out of the rotation. Growing frustrated, he aggressively requested a trade, and thus, did not have an ideal parting of ways with the Nuggets. Here's how “The Bosnian Beast” described that particular situation in Denver, according to Jordan Greer of Sporting News:

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​”I believe you can develop guards together. But two centers? No way… I don’t want to make this a big drama like [Kevin Durant]. I was never on the same page with the coach and the front office. It just came to the point where I needed to go. My career was on the line.”

Despite all that, though, there's no beef between the two. In fact, Jokic is always quick to dismiss questions regarding the supposed rivalry between him and his “friend” Nurkic. Here's what he told Nuggets insider Harrison Wind on Monday:

Also, Jokic and the Nuggets have bigger things to worry about. They are more focused on gaining some rhythm back, as they have lost six of their eight games, and are now out of the playoff picture in the Western Conference.