Thrice-crowned Most Valuable Player Jokic sustains a 'heartbreaking' knee injury.

Triple National Basketball Association MVP Nikola Jokic suffered a "gut-wrenching" injury to his knee when the Denver Nuggets were defeated 147-123 against the Miami Heat.

Jokic injured himself towards the end of the second quarter during an unintentional contact with team-mate Jones.

The other player landed on the foot of the MVP, and he instantly collapsed to the court holding his knee.

The 30-year-old, that leads the league this season in rebounds and dimes, had a score of 21 points and eight dimes in the contest before incurring the problem.

Jokic will undergo an MRI scan on the following day to evaluate the seriousness of the issue.

"Right away, Jokic realized he was hurt," stated Nuggets head coach David Adelman.

"Injuries are part of the game. Anyone who gets hurt, that's tough to see, especially a player as important as him. More information will come tomorrow."

"We'll move on together. Obviously, at this moment, I am more concerned just about him personally and the disappointment of going through something like that."