The Denver Nuggets were smashed in Game 7 by the Oklahoma City Thunder, losing 125-93 to end the season in brutal fashion.
Nikola Jokic had an underwhelming day with the Thunder committing to forcing the ball away from the superstar center, and not enough Nuggets were able to step up to fill those shoes when it mattered.
Here’s the Notes from Game 7:
First Quarter:
- I can’t believe Aaron Gordon is playing, but his presence clearly helped Denver get off to a great start despite not being able to run and jump consistently
- Christian Braun was great throughout this game but especially in the first quarter, hitting big shots consistently to keep Denver in it
- Nikola Jokic got to the free throw line over and over early. I bet there’s no way that stops later in the game! /sarcasm
- OKC bailing Denver’s defense out with missed jumpers against Denver’s zone. Gordon can’t move, but the rest of the Nuggets looked like they couldn’t move either
Nuggets lead 26-21 after first quarter.
Second Quarter:
- No Jokic or Murray on the floor to begin the quarter, and the Thunder went on an 8-0 run to retake the lead
- Westbrook, Watson, and Strawther very much in over their heads off the bench in this one. Turnovers, missed shots, bad defense, not ready consistently
- Jokic returned, and Alex Caruso spent the entire time attempting to harass him as much as possible. About half of it was legal, but the ref crew swallowed their whistles for much of the contact
- Murray and Porter invisible for far too long offensively
- Gordon being attacked on rotational defense and simply can’t move fast enough to cover the ground defensively
- Jalen Williams had a fantastic second quarter stepping up for his team when they needed him
- Thunder were a boulder rolling downhill, scoring 39 points in the second quarter alone as the Nuggets desperately sought out answers
Nuggets trail 60-46 at halftime.
Third Quarter:
- Aaron Gordon elbowed Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the face, and that was about the only way the Nuggets could slow him down today
- Murray and Porter struggled with OKC’s physicality, but combining to go 1-of-12 on three-pointers simply wasn’t going to help matters. The open jumpers didn’t go down, and Denver spiraled
- Nuggets running out of gas in real time. Every jumper short, every defensive rotation slow. The Thunder had the energy and momentum
- Jokic didn’t take a shot in the quarter until a late three-pointer with the Nuggets down 25+, clearly bothered/annoyed/resigned to the physicality allowed to the OKC guards
- OKC’s offense was good enough that it didn’t need help, but Denver gave it to them anyway with some bad turnovers that turned into transition baskets
- Watson looked extremely out of sorts here
- Westbrook a -34 in 22 minutes. Not all his fault, but very emblematic that Denver’s only hope in this game was for the starters to play well, because the bench couldn’t pick them up at all
Nuggets lead 97-72 after third quarter.
Fourth Quarter:
- Nuggets kept starters plus Westbrook out there for a couple minutes to try and make a run, but the opposite occurred
- Multiple SGA buckets, some points for Williams, missed shots for Westbrook and Braun, a turnover for Jokic, and that was all she wrote as the Nuggets went down 30
- Starters were removed, and garbage time ensued. At least the Nuggets finally got Zeke Nnaji on the floor, their fifth highest paid player, to give them some minutes
Nuggets lost 125-93 vs Oklahoma City Thunder.
Short Takeaway
This was a brutal way to lose a playoff series but also not very surprising. With Gordon’s injury status, an already short Nuggets rotation was down to its last gasps. Denver needed everyone to deliver what they could to have a chance tonight, but the execution simply wasn’t good enough across the board to make up for so many issues.
Nikola Jokic was effectively being guarded in a Box-and-1 by Alex Caruso for much of the game. To me, Caruso is the best defensive guard in the sport, and he proved it today with an incredible effort against the much larger Jokic. He’s fouling a lot, but I don’t think Jokic handled it well either and was simply trying to show the foul to referees rather than playing through the egregious contact. Jokic had 20 points, nine rebounds, seven assists, and five turnovers today, simply not good enough in a Game 7.
He wasn’t the only one to falter though. Jamal Murray had 13 points on 16 shots and appeared overwhelmed at times. Michael Porter Jr. had just six points in 23 minutes and played fewer moments than Aaron Gordon, who gutted out 25 minutes and had 11 rebounds. The bench unit for the Nuggets was pretty poor as well with Russell Westbrook, Peyton Watson, and Julian Strawther all making major mistakes. Really, the only Nugget that played consistently well was Christian Braun, but he still shot just 2-of-9 from three again.
Unfortunately, the Nuggets ran out of gas at the wrong time against a deeper team on the road. OKC had one more major counter they could throw at Denver, and Caruso hit them like a haymaker. He was +40 today in 26 minutes. If the Nuggets are going to ever win a championship again, they will need a guy like that coming off their bench.
Final Rotations
