MVP Finalists Face-to-Face for this West Semifinals Showcase! | Official Nuggets (#4) vs. OKC (#1) Series Thread!

[threattonature]

Obviously Denver lost the game. But I believe whoever takes this series takes the NBA finals

As bad as they have looked at times I still have Boston winning it all.

 

[DraymondT]

That hasn't really worked in this series like it has against other teams.

He was turned into a bucket in Game 1 and dragged them back from the grave to get the W. Game 2 was irrelevant. The supporting cast got them the win in Game 3. In this game there were quite a few 'open' shots he usually makes which could easily had them up 3-1, and it's pretty much the first game where the supporting cast weren't eating off his looks that affected the result.

There's one thing that's been consistent in these playoffs -

It's to expect the unexpected.

All the conventional wisdoms and common truths we went into the postseason with, haven't really factored into anything. I put that down to the difference/inconsistency in officiating and fatigue (which is grander than usual because teams are defending more and more space now).

How has that not worked? He's right.

For the series Jokic got 21 assists to 23 turnovers. This the best passin center ever I don't know if he ever had a 4 game stretch wit more turnovers than assists like this. OKC figured him out and lockin his shyt up.

 

[Gil Scott-Heroin]

Jokic is amazing but- it’s time to start asking if his dominance has come from feasting off the currently going extinct small ball obsession that was left over from the previous decade of nba basketball

Or just maybe he's playing too many minutes and asked to do too much when he's on the floor (look at how many minutes he's playing in comparison to OKC's bigs). He did an all-time carry during the regular season, dragging the team to the 4th seed when Gordon was injured for half the season and Murray was busy trying to work himself into shape.

He killed OKC in Game 1, so let's not act like he isn't capable of doing so.

It's just fatigue and his elbow injury that's affecting his last few performances.

He has the biggest motor in the league, but he isn't a robot.

 

[darryl]

As bad as they have looked at times I still have Boston winning it all.

I Agree

 

[KillerPups]

My biggest concern for Denver is that with only one day rest between the next two games. With the heavy minutes the Denver starters have played compared to OKC I could see them legs giving out on them.

both teams looked gassed since game 3

 

[Primetime]

My biggest concern for Denver is that with only one day rest between the next two games. With the heavy minutes the Denver starters have played compared to OKC I could see them legs giving out on them.

What Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins did in that 3rd (?) quarter stretch may have saved the series for OKC. Perhaps their legs weren’t as dead on those 3s as all the other starters on both teams

 

[Gil Scott-Heroin]

How has that not worked? He's right.

For the series Jokic got 21 assists to 23 turnovers. This the best passin center ever I don't know if he ever had a 4 game stretch wit more turnovers than assists like this.

Except assists have been lower across the board for both teams, as a whole. Not just Jokic.

Consistent offense has been hard to come by.

OKC isn't getting results by making Jokic more of a scorer (it's more in spite of). Denver literally won Game 3 because the support cast stepped up. Their two wins have come through Jokic playing more of a scoring role.

OKC has just been lucky that his scoring hasn't been what it typically has since Game 1, otherwise, they'd potentially be down 1-3 right now. We saw what happened when Jokic had it going in the first game (OKC had no answer for it). Both teams are very fortunate that they aren't down 1-3 to the other with the way this series has gone.

 

[Trojan 24]

@Gil Scott-Heroin in here

 

[duckbutta]

Still wild to me Denver had an 8 and 18 point quarter and was still in the game

This game was straight out of 2002 with Pop telling the team just hold them under 90 rest of the shyt don't matter

 

[Damnshow]

Jokic is amazing but- it’s time to start asking if his dominance has come from feasting off the currently going extinct small ball obsession that was left over from the previous decade of nba basketball

I mean I thought this was recognized already??? For a while NBA had a shortage of true centers. Jokic and Embiid are superstar centers who would do well in any era, but if you throw more centers at them...their stats would drop a bit.

And there's been a lack of great centers for a while.

Even Dwight in his prime, who's offensive moveset is so inferior to those two names I mentioned, even he did whatever he wanted against most teams in the league with no centers. Just purely off athleticism. But when he'd play washed up Shaq or Yao....he wouldn't be as dominate.

 

[JesusFOREVER]

Or just maybe he's playing too many minutes and asked to do too much when he's on the floor (look at how many minutes he's playing in comparison to OKC's bigs). He did an all-time carry during the regular season, dragging the team to the 4th seed when Gordon was injured for half the season and Murray was busy trying to work himself into shape.

He killed OKC in Game 1, so let's not act like he isn't capable of doing so.

It's just fatigue and his elbow injury that's affecting his last few performances.

He has the biggest motor in the league, but he isn't a robot.

I’m just asking- but those are great points that elbow is worse then they’ve let anyone know about- but this also goes back to last year’s Timberwolves series as well where he ran out of gas against the double big- sometimes triple big lineups- I don’t expect him to be Thor but it’s something to take note

 

[Two Stacks]

My guys are exhausted. Really need to win this game today. FUKK!

 

[Gil Scott-Heroin]

I’m just asking- but those are great points that elbow is worse then they’ve let anyone know about- but this also goes back to last year’s Timberwolves series as well where he ran out of gas against the double big- sometimes triple big lineups- I don’t expect him to be Thor but it’s something to take note

I still don't know what you're getting at.

He averaged 30 points on 52% in the Minny series last season. He's killed 4x DPOY, 7fter Gobert in every series he's played against him, so what is there to question about his dominance against other bigs? I mean, didn't Shaq's dominance in LA come against a lack of big man competition? Didn't MJ's dominance come against the lack of guard competition and the diluted talent during the expansion era?

His struggles are largely down to him being fatigued because they have no depth. They've got no other big to rely on, so he's essentially been tasked with anchoring the frontcourt, by himself, for essentially the entirety of the game. It's not practical for anyone to do that, especially in today's league.

 

[Loose]

Except assists have been lower across the board for both teams, as a whole. Not just Jokic.

Consistent offense has been hard to come by.

OKC isn't getting results by making Jokic more of a scorer (it's more in spite of). Denver literally won Game 3 because the support cast stepped up. Their two wins have come through Jokic playing more of a scoring role.

OKC has just been lucky that his scoring hasn't been what it typically has since Game 1, otherwise, they'd potentially be down 1-3 right now. We saw what happened when Jokic had it going in the first game (OKC had no answer for it). Both teams are very fortunate that they aren't down 1-3 to the other with the way this series has gone.

Opposite if our scorer is how it is normally this series would be over.

We aren't hitting fts or 3pters

 

[Gil Scott-Heroin]

Opposite if our scorer is how it is normally this series would be over.

We aren't hitting fts or 3pters

Yeah, like I said in that post, both teams are lucky either isn't down 1-3 right now.

A lot of OKC's struggles are that they're having trouble adapting to the officiating, which we expected might happen. Fortunately for them, they have more adjustments to make than Denver has. All the Nuggets can rely on now is that they've got the legs to get two more wins. If they don't, then they'll lose, it's as simple as that.