Lu Dort Apologizes to Nikola Jokic After Flagrant Foul on Video in Thunder's Win vs. Nuggets

Oklahoma City Thunder wing Luguentz Dort apologized to Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić for inadvertently hitting him in the face during Monday's game.

Dort received with a flagrant 1 foul in the fourth quarter for making contact with Jokić's head. He was running around a pick set by the Nuggets big when his trailing arm hit Jokić.

"Just lost in the competition," Dort said to ESPN's Tim MacMahon after the Thunder's 129-126 win. "But shook his hand, [said] 'great game' and I apologized that that happened."

Nuggets-Thunder Full Highlights

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Dort reiterated his contact on Jokić wasn't intentional and thought it didn't merit a flagrant 1 foul.

"I didn't mean to hit him in the face," he said. "But when I go over screens and stuff like that, my arms are just everywhere, and then unfortunately I just hit him in the face. ... I didn't think it was a flagrant 1. Unnecessary means I did [it] on purpose, which I didn't."

Games between Denver and Oklahoma City are typically competitive affairs. They're both vying for a conference crown, and the Thunder outlasted the Nuggets in the second round of last year's postseason.

Tensions got particularly high during their last encounter. Dort was ejected in the fourth quarter of OKC's 127-121 win on Feb. 27 for tripping Jokić. The three-time MVP immediately confronted Dort, which sparked a brief shoving match.

While Monday's foul was far more innocuous, Nuggets head coach David Adelman sounded somewhat exasperated, telling reporters that "it's every time we play them."

The Thunder and Nuggets' season series wraps up on April 10, and it's the teams' penultimate game of the regular season. With the playoffs right around the corner, it should be another tightly contested battle.