Tonight, as the Denver Nuggets escaped Salt Lake City with a hard-fought 128-125 win over the Utah Jazz, all eyes were on Nikola Jokic. The superstar center seemed to be selling contact more than usual today, and his play caught the attention not just of fans but also of the local telecast. Here’s what happened.

During one particular sequence, Jazz defensive specialist Elijah Harkless seemingly poked the ball loose before it was called a foul, prompting color commentator and former player Thurl Bailer to question Jokic’s reaction.

“Yeah, and this is the Jokic antics right here,” he said. “He’s complaining to the ref about what? I mean, it’s been happening all night. He just knocked the ball out of your hands. So there’s no complaint. Just play.”

Later, forward Ace Bailey and Jokic were battling for a rebound, with the rookie ending up being called for a loose ball foul, despite it being clear on replays that he had knocked the ball away cleanly. Play-by-play broadcaster Craig Bolerjack couldn’t resist, pointing out that Jokic had once again ended up on the floor to try to appeal to the referees.

Bolerjack also highlighted that Jokic was nearly 80 lbs. heavier than the Jazz rookie, and then later called him out for a play when he seemingly took center Kyle Filipowski out of bounds during a free throw boxout, saying that Jokic “just drags and pulls [Filipowski] down” by the arm.

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“I don’t understand some of the calls,” Thurl Bailey said about the foul that was called on Filipowski for the sequence. “Especially the free throw one. For me, that was just the biggest one where Jokic initiated that. And drove Kyle Filipowski out of bounds. I thought that was a big call that swayed this game just a bit.”

Nikola Jokic Speaks on Mindset As Flopping Accusations Mount Against Him

After the game, Nikola Jokic asked about seeing defensive coverages, including smaller defenders, and double teams, and his view on his play was very different than what the Jazz broadcasters saw.

“I was trying not to force it and try to play the game and I think it was okay,” the Nuggets superstar told reporters after the game. “We did a good job passing, scoring. We still scored 120 points, so it’s a good night for us.”

He also pointed towards one crucial late-game sequence. With about 30 seconds left on the clock and the Nuggets up by one, Jazz guard Keyonte George drew a foul on Jokic that would have fouled him out and given the Jazz a chance to take the lead. Instead, Jokic appealed for a challenge on the play, which ended up overturning the call and giving the Nuggets the ball.

“I just tried to see did they see something crucial because I didn’t feel like it was something that is affecting, let’s say, like that,” Jokic said about his thought process. “So I just look at them to see do they see something, like did they slap him or whatever. And it was a good challenge for us.”