After a devastating 43-point loss in Game 2, the Denver Nuggets start anew to bring the series against the Oklahoma City Thunder to Colorado. Thankfully, the former champs bounced back in Game 3. From Aaron Gordon’s game-tying three to force overtime and Jokic, despite a terrible outing, leading an insane run to seal the deal, sending the Ball Arena to pandemonium.
Aaron Gordon Comes Up Clutch in Crunch Time Again
Time and time again, Gordon has become the reason why the Nuggets are surviving in the playoffs. A buzzer-beater dunk in the first round against the Clippers, a game-winner three in game 1 against OKC, and now, a game-tying three to force OT.
The 29-year-old forward finished with 22 points, 5 assists, and 8 rebounds.
Meanwhile, Christian Braun and Jamal Murray played exceptionally well on the defensive side of the ball. Braun made Shai Gilgeous-Alexander work for every shot, holding the MVP frontrunner to only 18 points on 7-of-22 shooting, which is awful for a guy of his caliber.
Murray, on the other hand, had an impressive all-around game. He got 27 points and 8 assists, but was equally impactful as a wing defender by making timely stops.
It was, however, Michael Porter Jr., who surprised everyone by coming out of the shadows. MPJ played his best game throughout the playoffs after producing 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting despite having lingering hand injuries.
Jokic Makes Historically Awful Yet Great Playoff Game
Game 3 wasn’t exactly a night for Nikola Jokic. The 3-time MVP shot poorly against OKC, shooting 8-of-25 from the field and was 0-for-10 from behind the arc. The Serbian superstar would end up with the worst True Shooting percentage, the second most missed shots, as well as having the most missed threes in a single playoff game. Adding damage is his giving up 8 turnovers, which is also the most in NBA playoffs history.
Despite a horrible statline, Jokic was still able to lead Denver to a much-needed win at home to command a 2-1 lead.
Jokic, however, put up a modest 20 points, 16 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks, tying NBA great Charles Barkley in all-time 15-15-5-2-2 playoff games. He also passed Byron Scott for the 48th in all-time playoff scoring with 2,460 points tallied and went past the likes of Bill Laimbeer, Rasheed Wallace, and Nate Thurmond for the 42nd place in all-time playoff rebounds leaders.
