After head coach Michael Malone was surprisingly fired by the team on Tuesday, Nikola Jokic’s future with the Denver Nuggets is under question. The 2023 NBA champions released both Malone and general manager Calvin Booth with only three games left in the regular season.
It’s anybody’s guess what Jokic might be thinking about this situation, but sportsbooks already got to work on which team would have the bigger chances to land Jokic if he decided to part ways with Denver.
Following back-to-back playoff wins over the Los Angeles Lakers, the purple and gold could end up being Jokic’s next team.
Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
Per Bovada (via NBA Central on X), the Lakers are the favorites to become Jokic’s next team (+500), followed by two Serbian teams: the KK Mega Basket (+600), where Jokic started his professional career and the KK Joker (+800), the local team where he started his playing days.
The next two NBA teams on the list are the Toronto Raptors (+1000) and Los Angeles Clippers (+1200).
The Lakers are the favorites to be Nikola Jokić’s next team, per @BovadaOfficial
Los Angeles Lakers +500
KK Mega Basket +600
KK Joker +800
Toronto Raptors +1000
Los Angeles Clippers +1200
Golden State Warriors +1800
Oklahoma City Thunder +2500
Brooklyn Nets +2800
Miami Heat… pic.twitter.com/FDLk4wUqj1— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 8, 2025
Jokic is having another remarkable season with the Nuggets, averaging 30.0 points, 12.8 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game, shooting 57.7% from the field, 41.5% from deep and 80.3% from the free-throw line.
After reclaiming his throne as the NBA MVP in 2024, he’s taken his game to another level again. The Nuggets, however, are in the middle of a four-game losing streak that started with Russell Westbrook’s collapse against the Minnesota Timberwolves last Tuesday.
The 2025 offseason could change a lot of things for the Nuggets.