Nikola Jokic admitted the Denver Nuggets need to be concerned following defeat against the New York Knicks.

A 116-110 reverse at Madison Square Garden condemned the Nuggets to a fifth loss in six games, reducing their lead at the summit of the Western Conference.

The Nuggets now stand four wins ahead of the Sacramento Kings and Memphis Grizzlies, with their form dwindling at a crucial stage of the season.

Despite that, Denver are still poised for the number one seed and home court advantage throughout the playoffs – though Jokic remains worried about their form.

"It is what it is. We need to be concerned. We need to try to win the next one," he said.

"Me first, and then everybody collectively, needs to do a better job of rebounding the ball, because even when we made a couple of stops, we didn't rebound and they just got easy ones.

"They had like 15 offensive rebounds, so that's a lot. That's 15 chances to score again."

Nuggets coach Michael Malone also highlighted rebounding as a problem for his side, particularly late in the game.

"It was the rebounding, and our inability to defend without fouling. Now you're playing against a set defense for 12 minutes, and then you couple that on top of turnovers. I think those are three areas that stood out to me," he told reporters.

The Nuggets will aim to stop the rot in their second consecutive game in New York against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.