NBA: Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic receives one-game suspension for leaving bench during altercation with Utah Jazz

New York: Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic was suspended one game without pay by the NBA on Friday for leaving the bench during an altercation that brought fines for two other players. [caption id=“attachment_5519851” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Nikola Jokic. Reuters[/caption] Denver center Mason Plumlee was fined $25,000 and Utah Jazz center Derrick Favors was fined $15,000 for the incident, which came 9:14 into the opening quarter of Utah’s 114-108 victory over visiting Denver on Wednesday. Jokic, a Serbian 7-footer (2.13m), was aggressive and near the incident which the league ruled had “created the potential for further escalation of the situation.” Plumlee and Favors each received a technical foul and were ejected. Jokic’s ban meant he was ineligible for Denver’s home game Friday against the Phoenix Suns, who rank worst in the Western Conference at 11-39. Jokic averages 19.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 1.3 steals a game. The 23-year-old center, who helped Serbia to Olympic silver at Rio in 2016, has sparked Denver’s 31-15 start to the season. The Nuggets have the fifth-best record in the NBA and rank second in the Western Conference, two games behind defending NBA champion Golden State.