Nuggets Star Admits Feeling Guilty For Letting Down Legendary Nikola Jokic Performances

Denver Nuggets forward Cam Johnson was not pleased with his performance and not being able to help teammate Nikola Jokic during their loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday.

Nuggets Star Admits Feeling Guilty For Letting Down Legendary Nikola Jokic Performances

Nikola Jokic and Cameron Johnson (Image credits - FirstSportz)

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Any team with Nikola Jokic within its ranks is a contender for the NBA championship. That shows how great the three-time MVP has been over the last five years. Jokic knows what it takes to win an NBA championship, after winning with the Denver Nuggets and delivering the franchise’s first ever championship in 2023.

This season has been no different for the Serb as he continues to do what he does best. Jokic is currently averaging 30.4 points, 13 rebounds and 10.8 assists after 16 games in the 2025-26 campaign. His performances have propelled the Nuggets to second in the Western Conference standings with a 12-4 record, only behind defending champions, Oklahoma City Thunder.

After a strong start to the season, the Nuggets have lost two of their last four games. While ups and downs are common in the regular season, the losses were against teams they were expected to win. A close loss to the Chicago Bulls and a loss to the Sacramento Kings on Saturday.

The Nuggets were beaten by the Kings in a close encounter, 128-123. Jokic scored 44 points to go along with 13 rebounds and 7 assists. A vintage performance but still not enough to get over the line as they continue to struggle defensively.

Recently acquired forward, Cameron Johnson, has not had the best of starts to the season. The 29-year-old has struggled to find his place so far, averaging only 9.4 points per game. While things may get better with time, Jokic needs help if they are to contend for a championship, and Johnson is aware of that.

He’s incredible. It’s like a guilty feeling, the performances he puts together, and not being able to come out with a win. He puts his all into it. Plays hard. Plays a lot of minutes. You wanna win those games.

Cameron Johnson said in the post-game presser

Nuggets are not ready to contend for the championship

As a former NBA champion, Nikola Jokic knows what it takes to win the elusive NBA title, and it seems he doesn’t think the Denver Nuggets have that yet. Even though they have suffered only four losses so far, Jokic was feeling pretty pessimistic about his team’s season after the game.

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Nikola Jokic (Image credits – DNVR Sports)

While the center is putting up MVP numbers and is averaging a triple-double this season, Jokic thinks the squad is capable of much more. The bench and role players have struggled to help Jokic, and with Aaron Gordon ruled out for the next few weeks, it does not look very promising for Jokic and his team.

In the post-game press conference, Jokic did not seem optimistic about the team contending for a championship despite holding an above par win record for the season.

I think 12–4, it’s not the real picture. I think we are not that good. I think we need to be much better if we want to do something big. Yes, we’ve played better. We look better. But I think we need to consistently, every night, every possession.

Nikola Jokic said

Teams are closing in on the Nuggets

The Western Conference was always going to be stacked. While OKC continues to dominate with reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leading the way, it does not look like any team is catching up to them anytime soon as their current record is 16-1.

But things are a lot more interesting after that. The game differential between the Nuggets, who are placed second, and the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are currently seeded sixth, is only two games.

With still a long way to go in the regular season, there will be a lot more changes in the West heading forward.

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