Denver’s worst-case scenario potentially struck Monday in Miami.

Nikola Jokic was marked questionable to return at halftime of a 147-123 loss to the Heat and was later ruled out for the second half with a left knee injury.

The injury occurred when Spencer Jones inadvertently stepped on Jokic’s left foot in the final seconds of the second quarter and Jokic fell to the hardwood grabbing his left knee. The three-time Most Valuable Player eventually limped back to the locker room under his own power.

Jonas Valanciunas started the second half in Jokic’s place, and Denver’s franchise cornerstone was not spotted on the bench in the third quarter.

“All I know is it’s a left knee injury. He has to go through the whole process of what it is. Watching it at halftime, it looked like his feet got tangled up with a teammate. Obviously, immediately he knew something was wrong,” Nuggets coach David Adelman told reporters after the game. “This is part of the NBA. Anybody that gets hurt in this game, it’s kind of gut-wrenching, especially somebody as special as he is. We’ll find out more tomorrow.”

Denver and Miami were tied 63-63 at halftime. The Heat opened up an 11-point advantage to start the fourth quarter and blew out the Nuggets in the fourth quarter.

When Cam Johnson was injured last week in Dallas, he was initially listed as questionable to return before medical imaging was performed back in Denver. Johnson is expected to miss at least a month after hyperextending his right knee against the Mavericks. The Nuggets were able to return to Denver the night of the injury and have medical imaging done the following day. Jokic’s situation is a little different, as the Nuggets are in the middle of a seven-game road trip that doesn’t end until Jan. 7. He will either stay in Miami or have testing done once the team arrives in Toronto.

Entering the night, Jokic’s averages — 29.9 points, 12.4 rebounds, 11.1 assists and 1.4 steals — and efficiency — 60.4% shooting from the field, 44% from 3-point range and 85.5% on free throws — had him squarely in the Most Valuable Player race alongside last year’s winner, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He’s been a staple of availability, playing fewer than 70 games just once in his NBA career. The exception is the 2022-23 season when Jokic played 69 games.

Without Jokic available in the second half, Valanciunas was the only other true center on the roster. Zeke Nnaji, who played some in the first half, has split time between power forward and center in the past with mixed results. He spelled Valanciunas late in the third quarter, and rarely used rookie DaRon Holmes II got some playing time early in the fourth quarter while the game was still up for grabs.

Jokic had 21 points, five rebounds and eight assists at the time of his injury.

Should Jokic miss a stretch, Jamal Murray will be the only member of Denver’s starting five available for Wednesday’s game against the Raptors.

“We’ll move on as a team. Obviously, right now, I’m more concerned just about him as a person. The disappointment of going through something like that, it’s unfortunate, hoping for the best — just like we did for Cam and the other starters that we’ve lost,” Adelman said. “You just have to stay with it as a team and as a group. Honestly, you have to stay with it as a team and as a group, because that’s how you best support your teammates that are out by honoring them when you play. We’ll move on from there. Like I said, it’s part of the NBA. It sucks, but hoping for the best (Tuesday).”

HEAT 147, NUGGETS 123

What happened: Denver trailed by a dozen after the first quarter, tied the game by halftime but fell behind by 11 to start the fourth without Jokic in the third quarter. Things got away from the Nuggets in the fourth, and they dropped to 22-10.

What went right: Rookie Spencer Jones went 5 for 5 from 3-point range. He also recorded three steals, three rebounds and a block to go with his 16 points on six shots.

What went wrong: The best player in the world sustained an apparent knee injury. And the Nuggets dropped consecutive games for the first time this season.

Highlight of the night: For the second time in recent weeks Jamal Murray threw Nikola Jokic an alley-oop. This time the center finished the sequence with a dunk in the middle of the first quarter.

Up next: Denver plays the third of its seven consecutive road games on Wednesday in Toronto.