NBA playoffs – Playoffs – Day 51
intense heat
Denver Nuggets
The fourth game of the NBA Finals, in which the Denver Nuggets relied on a sensational performance from Aaron Gordon to defeat the Miami Heat (108-95) and prevail in a tie (3-1), is getting tighter after the Western franchise had won its first title in its history, the small amount of emotion it aroused in the reserve was saved for last.
It happened three minutes into the fourth quarter. Nikola The infallible Jokić made two mistakes in a row! in two consecutive games, earning him his fourth and fifth fouls, one of them offensively. Therefore, his coach Michael Malone had no choice but to send him to the bench.
Then the local public at the Kaseya Center gave up their white lethargy and for a moment believed in miracles and in the two hard-won glories for their team during an atypical season: that they belong to a resilient species that thrives in the fourth quarter and who like Long-distance boxers know how to get back up from the canvas after a heavy downpour.
The visiting team kits were jittery for a moment, but everything remained a mirage. And Miami, a city that has had no room for news these days between Donald Trump’s insinuation and the local football team’s signing of Messi, has proven once again that miracles don’t happen.
The Heat didn’t manage to catch the qualifying train in those minutes, an express train that passed before their eyes like an exhalation. The five minutes that Jokić was absent served two purposes: to briefly introduce himself to what his team and this game would be like without his oddball talent, and to show how little the Nuggets, who weren’t having their most inspiring evening, need to win this evening season. Final.
shot for the rush
Shortly after the Serbian center returned to the field, a Denver three sounded like a shot for the Miami fans to rush into the parking lot. For the first time that night, the chants “Let’s go Nuggets!” managed to cover the phrases of “Let’s go Heat!” without embarrassment to those who uttered them.
Until then, the story of the game was that of two teams trying to find each other.
For the Nuggets, who only need to win one more game in their next three games, two of them at home, to claim a deserved title, it was enough that their star didn’t completely lose focus. His own helped Gordon’s move forward given the absence of Jamal Murray, a partner with amazing stats who were all assists this time. He scored 27 points (15 of them in a spectacular second quarter), versus Jokić’s 23.
In the post-game press conference, the star defined Gordon as a “player who knows how to make sacrifices.” “He just won the game for us,” explained Jokić. Malone also paid tribute to him. “I couldn’t be prouder of his impact tonight,” he said.
And the heat? It was the first time since the start of the postseason that they finished bottom in a draw (2-1). “Tomorrow we’ll go out with a lot more energy, compete at a high level and win at home,” his star Jimmy Butler had promised in a press briefing with one of his players on Wednesday, delivering characteristic messages, a mix of firm confidence and encouraging chats with his peers.
He got 25 points, but that didn’t help much: the team’s fuses never stopped flashing, even if they occasionally jumped a spark. For example in the first quarter, when an arreón at the end helped them finish the game by a point (22-21). Or in the second round you lost only four (51-55).
In the third, the dominance of the nuggets became law. It was also the fourth of the night’s surreal episodes. Sam Adebayo, once again among the best on his team with 15 points and 12 assists, received a pass in the suit where he mistook the idea of dunking for holding on to the basket like it was a mid handle in the game. Tropical hurricane. Not only did he not score; He was whistled for a foul and play had to be stopped for five minutes to equalize the basket as Jokić was unable to equalize by getting stuck twice on the other side. After the technicians pulled it off professionally, a stretcher drove to the other corner of the field to take a spectator to the infirmary.
The next round of the fight takes place next Monday at Denver’s Bell Arena. If the Nuggets win at home, the matter is settled. Should the game be won by the Heat, the two will meet again next Thursday in Miami. Should a seventh game be necessary, teams will head west again.
Franchises that made it this far by a margin, like the Nuggets, eventually won the series 97.2% of the time (35-1). Statistics, which play a big role in the NBA, are known to be like Oscar Wilde’s quotes: You can always count on them to prove one thing and the other. So the only consolation for the Heat is looking at each other in the Cleveland Cavaliers comeback against the Golden State Warriors in 2016. They lost 3-1 and ended up in the ring.
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