Is Nikola Jokic getting traded after Nuggets' early playoff exit?

The Denver Nuggets got embarrassed by a Minnesota Timberwolves team that's missed Anthony Edwards the last two games.

Nikola Jokic isn't running from the criticism sparked by the early playoff exit, though. He's taking accountability, something his coach ought to try, but we'll get to that in a moment.

"I needed to play better," Jokic said, per ESPN. "I must play better. I think I was getting in the rhythm from the third game, but I needed to play much better."

In an uncharacteristically inefficient series for Jokic, the three-time MVP shot only 39% from the field over the first four games before heating up in the final two.

Still, it's hard to put the blame on the big man's shoulders. Jokic's running mate, Jamal Murray, was a non-factor thanks to the suffocating defense of Jaden McDaniels. Aaron Gordon was hobbled by a soft-tissue injury after a largely unhealthy season. And then there's David Adelman, who got thoroughly outcoached by Chris Finch then used injuries as an excuse for Denver's epic flameout.

"I know it just ended, but I do feel like I can't really give you a complete answer [on the bigger picture] because it was an incomplete season," Adelman said. "It felt like that throughout. It felt like survival."

No one would blame Jokic for trying to escape that loser energy. But is he really on the move? Not if it's up to him.

Jokic, who has two years (including a player option for Year 2) and $121.9 million left on his contract, said postgame "I still want to be a Nugget forever." The 31-year-old is eligible for an extension of four years, $293 million this summer.

Denver will need a big reset if it hopes to compete for a title again in Jokic's prime. Jokic seems to be patient as the franchise navigates the challenge.