Nikola Jokic and Mat Ishbia Make Nice Before Nuggets-Suns Game 5

Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic had a playful jab for Suns owner Mat Ishbia before Tuesday night's Game 5.

After getting fined $25,000 by the NBA and (narrowly?) avoiding suspension for shoving Ishbia, Jokic went up to the owner during warm-ups and jokingly handed him the ball.

As you'll recall, the spat between Jokic and Ishbia started when the latter held onto the ball too long during an out-of-bounds play. Jokic went over to grab the ball for a potential fast-break play but got tangled up with Ishbia and the home crowd at Footprint Center. The Joker shoved Ishbia and received a tech.

READ: NIKOLA JOKIC GETS TECH’D FOR RIPPING BALL FROM FLOPPING SUNS OWNER

With tensions running high after the Nuggets loss, Ishbia spoke out on the incident and stated that Jokic does not deserve a suspension for the shove, chalking it up as a "heat of the moment" play.

The NBA released a statement on Jokic's punishment:

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has been fined $25,000 for making improper contact with a spectator sitting courtside, it was announced today by Joe Dumars, Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations.Phoenix Suns Governor Mat Ishbia came into possession of the game ball when it bounced into his hands following a play near his seat, and Jokic made contact with Ishbia in an attempt to take the game ball away and immediately after when the ball flew further back into the crowd.The incident, for which Jokic received a technical foul, occurred with 2:36 remaining in the second quarter of the Nuggets' 129-124 loss to the Suns in Game 4 of their conference semifinals playoff series on May 7 at Footprint Center.

Denver defeated the Phoenix Suns, 118-102, to break the series tie at 3-2.