The Denver Nuggets clinched one of their biggest wins of the season Thursday night at the , with ’ game winning three sending them to a 127-124 victory over Oklahoma City.
Here are six takeaways from the wild victory:
1. What a game. An NBA regular-season contest is memorable if it includes the first game-winning shot of Gary Harris’ career. Or 43 points from Paul George on 19-of-26 shooting. Or a triple-double from with a career-high in assists (14). Or a Russell Westbrook 20/20 game. But for all of that to happen in the same contest? Unreal. Then add in Denver’s first-half offensive avalanche, the Thunder’s impressive rally and the fan who somehow got on the floor to confront Westbrook, and what pops out is one of the most entertaining games in the NBA this season. TNT had to be thrilled.
“Today was like no other,” Nuggets point guard said, “just to have everybody contribute and play the way they did at home.”
2. What a finish. Jokic said after the game that the final play call was one they used earlier in the season, which resulted in a alley-oop dunk just before the quarter buzzer. The stakes were obviously much higher this time, and a lot of things happened on that final play that could make the NBA officials’ two-minute report quite interesting on Friday. It appeared that Jokic was close to getting whistled for not inbounding the ball within five seconds. Chandler’s screen on Jerami Grant sent him to the floor. And Westbrook hung a bit close to the lane and basket rather than staying tight on Harris in the corner, giving Harris space to get free before Westbrook closed rapidly.
3. What a quarter. That final period is tough to summarize, because every possession felt big at the time. Grantap seven points (five on free throws) helped lead an early charge to get the Thunder within 10 points before its starters re-entered for the stretch run. Then George and Westbrook scored the Thunder’s final 24 points, including George’s game-tying 3. But Jamal Murray kept answering with 10 straight Nuggets points (including an amazing finish off the glass) over a four-minute stretch, before two Jokic free throws and Harris’ game-winner.
4. What a week. How often does one team have three consecutive contests come down to the potential game-winning shot — particularly against that level of competition? Still, Denver took vastly different routes to reach that point. The Nuggets needed a furious comeback against Boston on Monday before a less-than-ideal final shot attempt by after coach Michael Malone opted not to call timeout. They hung with San Antonio throughout Tuesday’s contest, and Barton got a much better last look that rattled out. Thursday, Denver held off the surging Thunder to record a victory in which they never trailed. The only tie was when George hit his late 3. Then the Nuggets gave the ball to the man Malone recently called their MVP thus far because of his consistency and efficient shooting. And Harris buried it.
5. What a stat. Denver limited a Thunder team that entered Thursday leading the NBA in offensive rebounds (12.5 per game) to nine. Denver committed 11 turnovers against an OKC team that swipes an NBA-best 9.5 steals per game. The Nuggets also won despite surrendering 66 points in the paint (they had 48) and compiling just 21 bench points (OKC had 41). Denver totaled 32 assists on 50 made field goals and hit at least 15 3-pointers for the ninth time this season.
6. What a quote.
Malone on Jokic’s second dunk of the season: “That should have been a national holiday. Like I said earlier this season, they should be giving out free hot dogs to everybody (when Jokic dunks). That is a rare sighting. That was phenomenal.”
Murray on his ankle-breaking move on Steven Adams: “I kind of smirked when I shot it. I shot the ball, but I looked down at the same time. I was like, ‘Oh, damn.’”
Jokic on his reaction after Harris’ game-winner: “I was running to catch Gary. He was fast.”
