The Denver Nuggets qualified this Monday for the first time for the North American Basketball League (NBA) play-off final, by ‘sweeping’ the Los Angeles Lakers (4-0), after a new victory in Calif., 113-111. .
The local team, led by a ‘vintage’ LeBron James (31 points, the highest of his career in a part of a play-off game), dominated in the middle of the game (73-58), but the Nuggets turned around to the game in the third half (36-16) and, as in the entire series, they were stronger in the decisive moments of the fourth.
Thus, and after two victories at home (132-126 and 108-103) and one in LA (119-108), the Nuggets prevailed again, led by a ‘double triple’ from Serbian Nikola Jokic, chosen as the ‘Player Most Valuable’ (MVP) of the Western Conference Finals.
Jokic finished the game with 30 points, 14 rebounds and three assists, being decisive in the second half, in which he added 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, including the winning basket, with 51.7 seconds remaining.
Serbian polo got a lot of help from all the other starters, namely Jamal Murray (25 points and five assists), Aaron Gordon (22 points, six rebounds and five assists), Michael Porter Jr. (15 points and 10 rebounds) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (13 points and four rebounds).
In the host formation, the five starters also scored the all of ten, led by LeBron James, who had 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, but only scored nine points after the break, with four of 12 in the ‘shots’ of field
Among others, James failed at the end of the basket that would take the game to overtime: in the last attack, four seconds from the end, the basket was close, but Murray made it difficult for the ball to go up and, later, Gordon ‘drowned it’ ‘ and sealed the 4-0.
For his part, Anthony Davis added 21 points -including two free throws to tie the game at 111, with 1.13 minutes remaining- and 14 rebounds, Austin Reaves scored 15, the German Dennis Schroder scored 13 and the Japanese Rui Hachimura added 10.
The Nuggets, who had never reached an NBA final, now await the celebration of the Eastern Conference final, which can also close today, in Florida, also with a ‘sweep’, since the Miami Heat beat the Boston Celtics by 3-0.
The NBA final, the best of seven games, like all play-off qualifiers, only starts on June 1, with the Nuggets having the local factor on their side in case the Heat advance to the decisive duel.
In the regular season, the Nuggets won the Western Conference with 53 wins and 29 losses, while the Miami Heat were only eighth in the East, with 44 wins and 38 losses. The Celtics were second in the East, 57-25, and would have home-field advantage in the final.
After Monday’s defeat against the Lakers, there are already 150 teams that have just been eliminated after a 3-0 deficit, a result that has never been reversed in the NBA play-offs.
Source: TSF
