The best two words in sports are supposed to be Game Seven, but when Denver Nuggets fans hear those words, they probably just feel nauseous.
Denver’s deflating 111-105 Game 6 loss has set up Nuggets fans for a nerve-wracking wait as both teams gear up for a monumental game that will decide the series on Saturday Night.
The Nuggets had a golden opportunity to put their foot on the Clippers’ throat, and give themselves time to rest and prep for the 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder. Instead, the Nuggets left Intuit Dome on Thursday Night with a lingering feeling that they left some meat on the bone.
Turnovers, a horrendous third quarter, and another mediocre game from their best player decided their fate and were just some of the self-inflicted wounds that cannot be repeated if Denver wants to keep their season alive.
If the Nuggets want to avoid falling to 1-3 in home Game 7’s in the Jokic era, here is what will have to happen.
Jokic has to be the best player on the court
There’s plenty to blame for Denver’s Game 6 shortcomings. But Jokic’s uncharacteristic performance was the biggest reason Denver lost.
Yes, perhaps it’s unfair to blame the guy who put up 25-8-7 while also getting mauled by the Clippers’ defense the entire game. But heavy is the head that wears the crown. Jokic is the best player in the world. He will probably go down as a top 10 player in NBA history when it’s all said and done. That is why the bar is so freaking high.
Jokic wasted an opportunity to capitalize on a game where his supporting cast was overall pretty good. Denver got 21 points from the bench, shot 40% from three, and got solid to good games from Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, and Aaron Gordon.
But Jokic only scored five points in the second half and was not nearly aggressive enough. The Joker also had four turnovers and made a number of very questionable decisions. Jokic has to return to being the best player on the court if the Nuggets want to win on Saturday. It might be simplistic, but it’s true.
Russell Westbrook cannot try to be the hero
I have to give Russell Westbrook some major props. I’ve been a critic of his for months and blamed a lot of Denver’s problems on his decision-making and lack of spacing. But in this series, Westbrook has been fantastic.
I thought his game last night was one of his best as a Denver Nugget, despite his late missed layup. Not only was he efficient, but he made really good decisions with the ball, and he stuck to his role without trying to be a hero.
If Russ can produce anything resembling his Game 6 line of 14-10-6 on 50-50 splits with only 2 turnovers, the Nuggets will probably win on Saturday. If he lets his emotions get the best of him, recklessly drives into defenders at the wrong times, or chucks a bunch of threes off the dribble, and the Nuggets lose? His last ever meaningful playoff game is going to shift into a really ugly media narrative, and all the Russ critics are going to have a field day.
I have no clue what type of performance he is going to have, but no scenario would surprise me. For the sake of my blood pressure, I hope a one-armed Michael Porter can be just good enough to close with, so Russ isn’t in a position to be on the court late in a tight-knit fourth quarter, and possibly decide the end of this game, and the series.
DeAndre Jordan shouldn’t play
David Adelman was put in an impossible spot when the Nuggets fired Michael Malone, and I think he’s done an absolutely marvelous job as the Nuggets' interim. That being said, Adelman's decision to continue relying on a 36-year-old DeAndre Jordan in the non-Jokic minutes is simply mindboggling.
When Ivica Zubac has gone to the bench, the Clippers have been rolling out a small-ball lineup, which makes his decision to play DJ even more puzzling. Last night, DJ was a -6 in THREE minutes of action, in a game Denver lost by exactly six points.
Adelman has to adjust and find a different answer when Jokic sits. He could play Aaron Gordon as the small-ball five (my vote) or take a risk and let Zeke Nnaji out of the dog house. Heck, he can even play one of the Jokic brothers for all I care. Just. No. More. DeAndre. Jordan.
Turnovers can't continue to sway the tide
It doesn’t take Phil Jackson or a 15-minute YouTube video of “Thinking Basketball” to point out the obvious: The biggest key to this series for the Nuggets is turnovers. In Game 6, the Nuggets fumbled the ball away 14 times (seven came from Jokic and Murray), which turned into 23 points for the Clippers.
The Nuggets have lost every game in this series where they lost the turnover battle, except for Game 4, where the Nuggets needed the heroics of Aaron Gordon (and his fingertips) to barely escape a game they probably would have lost in overtime.
For the Nuggets, it’s really simple: take care of the ball, or enjoy watching the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Clippers from your hotel TV in Cancun.
Ball Arena cannot play the Avs game on the JumboTron
The NBA and NHL utterly screwed Nuggets and Colorado Avalance fans, by deciding that it would be a brilliant idea to put both of their Saturday Game 7’s in almost identical time slots.
As a result, Kronkee Sports and Entertainment could potentially decide to put the Avalanche game on the JumboTron during the Nuggets game, so fans can keep their eyes on both games at once.
With all due respect towards Nathan McKinnon and the Avs, this isn’t the right decision. The Nuggets need every little detail to go their way to win on Saturday night, and a crowd with a scattered attention span most definitely helps the visiting team.
At some point, the Nuggets are going to need a massive stop late in the game. If half the crowd is watching a power play instead of heckling James Harden, the atmosphere will feel a lot more like a game in late March, and less like a do-or-die Game 7 that could dictate the future of the roster and the Jokic era.
If you are an equal fan of both teams and don’t want to miss either game, then stay home. But as David Adelman alluded to in his postgame presser, a rowdy crowd will be vital if Denver wants to avoid yet another soul-crushing Game 7 loss on their home floor.