The Nuggets’ domination throughout the NBA playoffs continued, as they won their first championship in Game 5 of the series. With the help of former two-time MVP and Finals MVP Nikola Jokic, aka “Joker,” Denver squeaks out a gritty final win over Miami 94-89 on Monday night.
The Nuggets had a commanding first game against the Heat, as Miami came back with a game-two win over Denver. However, once the Nuggets had a 2-1 lead in the series, it seemed like any chance for the Heat to win was closing in them quickly with little time to recoup.
After only losing four out of the 20 playoff games in each series in the NBA playoffs, the Nuggets won four games first and had the one player the Heat couldn’t answer for. Jokic didn’t win his third consecutive Most Valuable Player Award this season, but he got his due at the end.
His 2023 campaign ended with a championship, the first ever for Denver in 47 seasons, and the finals MVP, being the lowest-drafted player to be named the MVP of the NBA finals. The Serbian was drafted 41st overall (second round) in the 2014 NBA draft by the Nuggets and has been on the team ever since.
Key role players and stars helped Jokic however, as guys like Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr., Bruce Brown Jr., and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had a moment to shine within the series against the Heat.
Even rookie Christian Braun, the former Kansas Jay Hawk guard, had his time in game three of the finals, scoring 15 points on the big stage. But he’s been in a similar situation before, as Braun is the fifth player in basketball history to win NCAA and NBA titles in back-to-back seasons. This exclusive list includes Bill Russell, Henry Bibby, Billy Thompson and Magic Johnson.
While Gordon and Porter Jr. showed up in certain spots, other than Jokic, Murray was his right-hand man and the second-leading scorer on the team. The Heat just couldn’t stop their main leading stat-getter Jokic or his teammates at times throughout the finals series.
Since Jokic is the “Joker,” I guess Murray is his sidekick, in this case, Harley Quinn. if it weren’t for his nickname, I guess Jokic as Batman and Murray as Robin would be fitting maybe. Something like that but that doesn’t take away the fact the mighty duo were unstoppable throughout the season.
The record breaker Jokic led in essentially most, if not all, categories statistically for the team, and capped off his finals performance with 28 points, 16 rebounds, and four assists.
Although Murray only had 14 points in the last game of the series, he joins an elite company, as the 4th NBA player to average 20 points and 10 assists in a Finals series. This list includes Michael Jordan, Lebron James, and Magic Johnson.
When asked how it feels to be an NBA champion, Jokic told ESPN’s Lisa Salters on the court: “It’s good. It’s good. The job is done, and we can go home now.”
The 28-year-old center is already considered one of the best players in the NBA and for him to be a big reason why Denver got their first championship title will bolster his case for being one of the best of all time.
Former Detroit Pistons great Isiah Thomas told ESPN about Jokic: “It puts him in the legendary category for what he’s done statistically in the Finals. I don’t know if there’s anyone who’s ever had a statistical run in the NBA Finals as a center as he had in these categories.”
The big men seem to be dominating the NBA as of late, with the Philadelphia Sixers center Joel Embiid winning MVP this past year. Milwaukee Bucks power forward Giannis Antetokounmpo has two MVPs under his belt, like Jokic, winning in 2019 and 2020, along with NBA Finals MVP in 2021. Jokic won his MVPs in 2021 and 2022, as all three have a case to be made to be the best. But right now, it is impossible to deny the greatness of the Denver center.
“Hey, right now, when you’re the champ and your team [wins the title], you’re the best player and the best team,” said Thomas, the 1990 Finals MVP. “And it may not be for [the next] five years. But when you’re talking about like now, the best player now is him. And the best team is the Denver Nuggets.”
Antetokounmpo, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, and Hakeem Olajuwon are the only players born overseas to take home the Finals award, other than Jokic who just took it home this season. The Serbian star is also the third second-round pick to win Finals MVP, joining Willis Reed and Dennis Johnson.
“I think it’s a great journey,” Jokic said about going from a second-round pick to Finals MVP. “Like you said, 41st pick, but that doesn’t matter. When you’re here, you’re a [NBA] player.”
Phoenix’s Kevin Durant said this after Jokic went off against the Suns:
“Jokic is an all-time great, he will go down as one of the all-time great centers to ever touch a basketball.”
Lakers’ James reiterated how great Jokic is and said this after the Nuggets eliminated Los Angeles:
“I know how great Jokic is. There are certain guys in this league that play the game a certain way, a certain way that I like to play the game as well, and he’s one of them where you are always off-balance when you are guarding a player like that because of his ability to score, rebound, shoot. He sees plays before they happen. There are not many guys in our league like that.”
If Jokic won a third straight MVP, it would’ve put him even higher in rare air, as only Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain, and Russell have done it previously. Averaging 30.2 points, 14.0 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 1.4 blocks over the five games, the center for Denver is the only player in NBA history to lead all players in points (600), rebounds (269), and assists (190) in a single postseason.
Among other marks surpassed in this playoff run, for Jokic and the Nuggets, this season was one for the record books to rewrite NBA history.
