Exchange with Nuggets Nikola Jokic near Suns huddle was ‘absolutely

DENVER – Monty Williams called it silliness.

Kevin Durant didn’t think it was anything and Nikola Jokic was just hilariously honest about intruding on Phoenix’s sideline huddle during Tuesday’s Game 5 at Ball Arena.

“Just to see what they were drawing up, just to see the play,” Jokic said. “That would help us a lot. And.”

Pause. Looked at Nuggets officials in the press room.

“I mean, that’s what I was doing,” Jokic continued.

Media laughter.

All part of the reaction to Bruce Brown and Jokic hovering around the Suns’ huddle in the third quarter of Denver’s 118-102 Game 5 win to take a 3-2 lead in this West semifinal series.

Durant and Brown received double technical fouls during the exchange that occurred with 37.6 seconds left in the third quarter and Phoenix down 20 points.

“The league has to figure out all that stuff, man,” Williams said. “There’s just too much silliness going on in the NBA when it comes to that. Everybody does it. It should be like a written rule that you shouldn’t walk over to somebody’s huddle, but everybody in the league does that. It’s kind of silly.”

The play was stopped after Nuggets rookie Christian Braun fouled Devin Booker.

Williams took that opportunity to gather Jock Landale, Terrence Ross, Cameron Payne and Durant around him. That’s when Jokic came over and started walking around the huddle.

Brown also made his way over there and had a slight exchange with Durant. Then Durant pushed Jokic, who flopped backwards in resp;onse.

Referee Bill Kennedy immediately hit Durant with a technical foul.

“Absolutely nothing,” Durant said when asked about his exchange with Jokic. “It wasn’t anything serious. They were excited, they were up big and we were trying to draw up some stuff and you…