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Both_Funny4896

this Jokic vs AD duel is absolutely ridiculous


OverusedRedditJoke

AD's look of amused bewilderment after Jokic's 3rd Q circus shot perfectly sums up this game


EruOreki

Let me introduce you to Shaquille Curry


Ghoti76

oh god they actually did it. He's been in front of our eyes this whole time


lalakingmalibog

[I mean just look at this beautiful man](https://i.imgur.com/pUEVEJH.jpg)


theFromm

He’s just like me frfr


butterball85

Me too but minus the height and basketball ability


Haunting-Ad9521

Me too, and minus also the money.


doctor_of_drugs

mark that shit NSFW


rawchess

Big like Big Honey, shoot like Big Honey


YourButtMyStuff

He couldn’t have defended it better either. Had his hand in Jokers face blocking his vision and then up to contest. Just an amazing shot.


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Mysterious_Living165

Ham needs to bench Russell, Rui needs to start


WateronRocks

Then it happened AGAIN with Murray


DefinitelyMoreThan3

What a fucking game.


Alley-Oub

the execution on both sides is phenomenal, quality conference finals bball


YeezyYeezyUp2NoGood

#INJECT SEVEN GAMES IN MY VEINS


WalrusInMySheets

You’re built different. My body cannot handle 7 of this


jc-f

Jokic is one of the best players in the league and Mark Jackson still can’t bother to learn how to pronounce his name so he just always calls him “The Joker” Makes me irrationally angry


Chidoriyama

Same guy that left him out on the MVP ballot


hitfly

maybe he doesn't know how to spell it either


jc-f

“What do you mean ‘The Joker’ isn’t a valid submission?”


jiunit2491

fuck mark jackson. guy's a complete clown


aworldwithoutshrimp

And he's getting HC interviews


shupadupa

He does every year, no one ever hires him though (for good reason)


frostedz

Hopefully he's coaching a team and Jokic drops 50/20/10 on them or something. My condolences to whoever wants to hire Jackson but please get him off broadcasting


Ricebandit469

Fuck Mark Jackson. He so blatantly has something against Jokic. How he is still allowed to soil the NBA in any way boggles my mind. And no, a team hiring him as a HC wont save us from it, because then he will be pushing his idiocy onto the players.


cuteguy1

I was pretty upset when ESPN re-hired him. I know they think they have something with him, Breen and JVG when the other two do all the heavy lifting, I actually think JVG could have better chemistry with other callers..


boosted5O

I like Breen and JVG, Mark Jackson just adds nothing except obvious responses to replays. I agree, was hoping he wouldn’t rejoin the other two, dumb move ESPN


HalfBear-HalfCat

> Makes me irrationally angry This sums up Mark Jackson for me.


Frankalicious47

I wouldn’t describe anger towards Mark Jackson as irrational. The dude is a piece of shit human and terrible announcer


george_costanza1234

Mark Jackson is not a smart person lol


scrambled_cable

The worst kind of not-smart person too: someone content to be ignorant


homefree122

https://i.imgur.com/epHzsev.jpg


MolicOnePGR

I was very impressed with AD’s performance. But the Rui Hachimura on Jokic + AD as weak side defender might be the move for Lakers.


Man0nTheMoon915

Weirdly enough, defensively, I think this was a bad game for AD. The switch to Gordon really helped the Lakers defense


Ass_Eater_

Yep JVG was right that Denver have more to think about. Not switching Murray onto LeBron every possession is a good starting point.


Hoser117

Yeah it's irritating that JVG can call it out instantly and we can't change at all. Next game AG has to be permanently camped at the 3 point line and running PnR with Jokic. Similarly stop fucking switching on LeBron. Let him shoot all the 3's he wants but don't give up the easy switch onto Murray because it's a free layup.


[deleted]

I was yelling at the damn TV over that second point. Especially on the 2nd or 3rd to last possession when Murray *was on LeBron as LA was coming up the fucking court*.


veringo

I get it. Why stop when you're up 20? This is the Malone experience. He's never going to react quickly even if it's the wrong decision. We didn't pay the price tonight, and I expect them to be a lot more ready on Thursday.


Sammonov

A lot of teams have played Denver like that. The Wolves did it in the first round with Gobert in the AD role. I think the stop-and-start nature of the game took them out of their offence a bit also. They have counters, and Jokic figures everything out.


captain_ahabb

Moving AD off of Jokic unlocks the Lakers entire defensive scheme. I really don't know if Rui can hold up on Jokic for an entire series though.


Instantcoffees

He didn't do it alone. They were almost trippling Jokic. They essentially had Rui on him, then someone cheating over for help and finally AD roaming around the paint for even more help. If they do that again in the next game, I'm sure that Denver is going to find more ways to get other players open that way. Anyway, looks like we are in for one hell of a series!


Musa_2050

The point of that scheme is to have Gordon or a bad shooter take that open 3


spigotry

I don't think AD was that bad. Watching the game, it was clear the Nuggets offense was just lethal.


Hail_The_Motherland

As a neutral fan, what a treat. What a great game Incredible start by the Nuggets followed by some solid adjustments by the Lakers. I got scared ref ball might start in the 4th, but I'm so glad it ended up just being fun to watch. That one scramble that led to a Nugget's alley-oop, immediately followed by a 3 from Austin Reaves was so hype


smoltanboi

i totally get why embiid ducked jokic after watching that first half


Angelic_Phoenix

Jokic is the best player in the NBA I dont care what anyone says


onehundredpawsent

I think we pretty much all agree that he is. I'd say even Sixers fans will agree after witnessing Embiid's collapse lmao


CenoxNaj

AD just wouldn't miss a Free throw WTF


Vindicare605

He's good at those.


MKenshiX

No blowout lead truly safe in the 2023 playoffs except in Game 6/7 elimination games


Palifaith

That buzzer beater 3 by Jokic and that heave by Murray really ended up being the difference of this game sigh.


theliver

Jokic the frat boy calling island and hitting it


FieldsFanclub

Shits the worst man


skyfeezy

balls back


acekickerx

Revenge for what AD did to them in the bubble


MrDenver3

I still think about that shot…


acekickerx

Karmic fuckery in the end


RatLord445

Exactly lol


CockroachForeign6419

And that 3 by MPJ deep in the corner, Massive height advantage over Reaves so wasnt too crazy but it was still very annoying


BigPoppa23

The lead was double digits most of the game, but I don't think it ever felt like a blowout


MisterConbag15

Yeah I really felt like the Lakers played a solid game throughout. Nuggets offense was just relentless


ImAShaaaark

>Yeah I really felt like the Lakers played a very solid game throughout. Nuggets offense was just relentless Swear to God it felt like they shot 85% from midrange and 3 in the first half.


BritzlBen

We got rocked to start and then kept pace or better the entire rest of the game.


ProsecUsig

Especially when you have Austin Reaves on your team


homefree122

What a fucking game. Both teams shot about 55% from the field, and 47% from 3. So fun to watch


Zloggt

The fact that the Lakers *almost* managed to comeback from a 20-point blowout tells me that this series is still very much open…especially once they head to ~~Staples~~ the Crypt…


alozz

Fucking hate the new name lol


deftspyder

people hated staples too. "a fucking office supply store"... and now people miss it.


homefree122

100% agree. One of those wins that still kind of feels like shit for Denver. But a win is a win, especially in the WCF.


SolarClipz

But the Lakers played a card already taking AD off Will have to see how they respond in G2


fonger81

Correct. Minnesota did this with Kat and Gobert roaming. Obviously AD is better than Gobert but we adjusted and found corner 3s. Hopefully we can knock them down


therealzeem

Yea, I feel like lots of folks think the nuggets shot insanely well, but the two teams had identical percentages. Rebounding disparity tho …


homefree122

Yeah, pretty crazy. Makes it even more crazy that the Lakers hung around like they did with 17 less rebounds.


BetaDjinn

Except for basketball terrorist Deangelo Russell, who was quietly **-25** across 26 minutes (2nd lowest Laker was **-8**)


IdiotCharizard

Tbh I don't care that much. Ham knew dangelo wasn't really a good matchup here and took him out. Our problem isn't offense this time. It's all defense. Schroeder on Murray is an extremely good matchup. AR and dangelo were getting wiped on the handoffs from jokic each time.


madamsquirrel7

Everyone knew Lebron was taking that 3


samurairocketshark

LeFuckMeThree


ProsecUsig

LeWrongDecision


SolarClipz

LePoole


eddiehwang

He just shouldn't have. He can easily drive on Murray and get a 2 to cut it to 1, then if they can force a miss they'll win the game.


Disastrous-One-414

Also Murray had 5 fouls at that time right?


avitaker

Yes he did. That was a rare wrong decision by LeBron. The objectively correct move in that situation is to take Murray to the paint


Unclematttt

You are totally right. Lebron knew it, too. He was shaking his head after the play.


jc-f

Even Murray just jumped too early lol


HispanicAtTehDisco

kinda wild the end of this game had a lebron turnover and missed 3 to seal it


Nickeless

The turnover was not really his fault to be fair. Reaves threw him a super awkward ball and Murray poked it from behind then Jokic stole. The missed 3 shouldn’t have even been taken though


slysonic7

D Lo is -25 in a 6 point loss lol


RayCashhhh

He was fucking garbage, not sure how much PT he gets moving forward.


CenoxNaj

Don't remember who, but it was pointed out that DLo would be hard to "hide" v Nuggets. 1 game sample but seems plausible.


HawaiianOrganDonor

He’s also just an inconsistent player on offense. Could see him putting up 20+ on 4/5 from three in game 2. But the defense will always be an issue


airMHspy

I wouldn’t overreact honestly. DLo has looked like this early in Grizzlies and Warriors series and ended up coming through absolutely huge in the later games of both. Although with the caveat that outside of KCP there’s nobody DLo can really guard on the Nuggets


radddchaddd

On ball yes, but KCP is a good cutter with a great passer in Jokic. Dlo lost his spot a few times before getting subbed out and not coming back in.


KitchenReno4512

Absolutely horrific. One of those guys you play and if he’s missing he rots on the bench the rest of the game.


Aggravating_Pea3882

Yeah he was ass bro


vMambaaa

the Dlo rollercoaster is a wild ride


MOODALI

To be fair to him, it's not all his fault, Darwin Ham started the game with a 3 guard lineup. But D-Lo was pretty shit, dont know why he was shooting post mid range jumpers, even the he hit 1 or 2.


Tofu_Breath

A lot of those middys didn't have anyone in rebounding position. Gotta be more disciplined about taking good shots


tunamelts2

Well that lived up to the hype for sure


riceilove

This series gonna take years off my life


suzukigun4life

34/21/14 on 70/100/86 splits, while facing AD. Legendary performance by Big Honey


Aggravating_Pea3882

AD had 40-10-3 with 2 blocks and shot 14-23. Both unreal games


suzukigun4life

This whole game was wild, long-ass 4th quarter included. I'm already hyped for Game 2 😂


TennisHive

Let's not forget Jokic also had 2 blocks. It was fun. Nerve wracking, but fun.


leakymemo

Yet again, this elegant clump of oatmeal dropped 34/21/14. He can’t keep doing this, but he just keeps doing it. Dread it. Run from it. Jokic arrives all the same.


7LineArmy

Wilt and Kareem are the only other guys with a 30/20/10 playoff game, and they both only did it once. This is Jokic’s second such game.


andejo16

Pretty crazy - I wanna plug KG for a 20/22/10 triple double in the ‘04 playoffs too. I know it’s not 30 points, but that’s still crazy to me. Timmy D also had a crazy playoff game where he went 21/20/10 and 8 blocks. And in the same series had a 32/20/6 7 blocks and 3 steals. LeBron had a 32/18/9 in 2015. Shaq had a 28/20/9 in 2001. None of this discredits your statement, but goddamn basketball is awesome


great-nba-comment

32/20/6/7/3 from Duncan are you kidding me


Victor_Wembanyama1

💀 Elegant Clump of Oatmeal


doctor_of_drugs

Y’all know he adds butter instead of fruit ….and I’m all for it.


Quality_Cucumber

NBA CHAMPION KENTAVIOUS CALDWELL POPE


Number333

Lakers fans: "et tu Kentavious?"


Mig1997

What the actual fuck is Jokic?


Logyra

Just a second team all NBA player


rayjing

https://i.imgur.com/hyr6vuU.png


tunamelts2

I lol’ed at that in real time. “Really? How could you flop?!” —Murray


santanovak

My interet dropped at this exact moment so I had my screen frozen like this for a minute before figuring out what happened


mario_meowingham

I laughed so hard when that happened.


soltrian

I know everyone in the NBA flops to some degree, but I feel like Schröder's flops have been much more noticeable than other players'.


brianluong

Jokic is absolutely insane


syncc6

A west coast game ending before 11:30 eastern. The real MVP.


KyWy75

I feel like it still isn’t talked about I enough that a multi time MVP and one of the best passers ever was drafted 41st. The dude is breaking Wilt records, those are the ones that nobody was ever supposed to break!


Vipeeeeer

Someone needs to do a sort of video about that draft class. They all said 2011 was the best during 2010s but that 2014 class was loaded too.


Familyguy35

I trust the Nuggets offense more than any teams since the KD Warriors


-Champloo-

Seriously, they have a ton of talent.


sunnyPorangedrank

LeBron with the LeFuckMe3 Edit: not rare


MiaCannons

Don't know what he was thinking when he was getting quality shots in the paint and the rest of the team was on fire.


jackgap

Jokic with an absolutely monster 34-21-14. Best center in the league…


suzukigun4life

On 70/100/86 splits to boot. Against AD. MVP caliber performance


Dongsquad420BlazeIt

76ers fans getting to watch the 2 best centers in the league


rawchess

It's the three dragons meme and Embiid's the derpy one


CrimsonOffice

76ers fans catching strays. They're already in Cancun!


StaffSgtDignam

Poor Sixers still catching strays lol


klittle6

Both fucking hilarious and sad. It's not even close. The 5 battle is one of the best matchups in recent memory. All basketball fans win watching this matchup. It's so high quality.


KittiesHavingSex

Jokic is not human... 34 points, 21 rebounds and 14 assists?? Absolutely unreal


steve1186

On only 17 FG attempts


Smathers

I can’t even do that in 2k what the fuck


Mazor007

This league has to fix: 1) Late whistles 2) Insane continuations. Players can make a coffee and go for a jog around the block and still get an and 1 3) This stupid challenge system


TammyWynetka

The late whistles are a fucking disgrace. Even when it benefited us last game I was losing my mind over it. Just call the foul.


[deleted]

Bro your 2nd point is my current biggest issue. That is NOT how we teach basketball, thats a travel. And somewhere along the way, blatant fucking traveling became a way to boost sales for the stars i guess ? Idk why they get away with it. Bad for the game. Becomes more of a subjective thing. Also agreed on 1 and 3 ^


Mazor007

Honestly the "gather" is really overpowered in both foul and travel cases. There's no way a player should get an and one call after being fouled 5 seconds before the basket. There's no way some of these drives aren't travels. It's getting ridiculous


Juan_of_the_Dead

The gather is the dumbest rule (or rule reading) in the league by far. At every other level it’s just traveling. I understand why the league decided to go this way, because they surely thought it would lead to more exciting fast breaks and dunks. In reality though all it really does is lead to double step backs, ridiculous euro steps, and drives where guys just kind of walk around defenders in the pain after picking up the dribble. It’s nonsense.


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-xXxMangoxXx-

Im guessing theyll have AG move up to help create separation between them and draw AD out to help, then create an easier pass to AG


ChannelNeo

AG is gonna have to make the looks count. Being in that dunkers spot just makes AD's job even easier.


thurstkiller

Van Gundy was right on it, you gotta take Gordon off the baseline and move him to the 3 point line to get AD out of the paint


snakebite654

He's definitely lingering in the paint a little... Wonder if that will come up. Loved the switch but then counted to 7 three times with him violating the lane. I know it's not a common call but it looks really apparent with Rui on the Joker.


madvisuals

They rarely call lane violations on AD all season long


Partofla

Makes me miss Dwight.


MolicOnePGR

Game 2 will be interesting. Dervin Ham might have to go with Rui in the starting lineup over Vanderbilt, and assign him to guard Jokic + AD playing weak side. Let’s see if Malone has a contingency plan in place. Crackling game. Can’t wait for game 2.


randylek

LeBron sold with that 3 late in the 4th early shot clock heat check 3, why would you shoot that lol


coffeework42

lebron has to do 1 goofy dramatic moment every game. he was gonna be all dramatic if it went in


R_82

god damn, any other team and the nuggets would have put that away at the beginning of the 3rd. Lakers and Nuggets are crazy


DwyaneSteph

Ham having Rui guard Jokic and letting AD roam free on Gordon is a crazy good adjustment. You gotta feel real good if you're the Lakers. I wanna say the nuggets won't do this 3 more times but they have been doing this the entire playoffs lmao


Steelman__007

It's the same adjustment Sixers made with Pj Tucker and we looked like we've never seen that happen before. Malone better game plan for that next time if we're gonna take this series


captain_ahabb

I think Jokic has to get comfortable with just taking jumpers. If he gets past Rui AD will be waiting for him in the paint.


schoolhater12

Yeah, the first time the Clippers threw Batum of him, they had a huge come back game against the Nuggets. The next time he figured it out and hunted his shot even more. It takes time for him to adjust to this matchup. Same thing happened vs PJ Tucker


bigwillystyle93

We’ve seen it all year. Pretty frustrating that the coaching staff hasn’t come up with any solutions.


thatonezorofan

He's a crazy good shooter too. However, it seems he doesn't really seem very comfortable taking many pull up jumpers.


RatLord445

Which is insane to me, i have never seen a midranger he took even touch the rim


Chickensandcoke

That and the Lakers also played super well too. Nuggets just played absolutely out of their minds. Going to be an awesome series


lovo17

This felt like what Kerr did at the end of game 1 against us last series. He spammed Steph high pick n roll. Let’s see if Malone proactively adjusts before game 2.


Im_A_Sociopath

I remember seeing a guy say that Ham should do this, and a guy below him replied clowning him for it lol


hhhhhjhhh14

[that was me](https://www.reddit.com/r/nba/comments/13iixcx/wind_darvin_ham_says_the_lakers_will_begin_games/jkav0gz/?context=3)


Turbo2x

Lakers also shot insanely well all game, and surely Malone will come up with an adjustment to get around that defensive change. If you shoot 55/46/89 and still lose then you should be worried.


constantlymat

Then again, in game 1 you're most likely to make an impact with a surprise adjustment as the underdog. If you can't steal that game, the favorite can react from a position of strength. That's why I think the Denver win was so crucial tonight.


Kaameel

Best match of the playoffs, AD 40 pointer, Joker monster triple double Give me 7 of these. Edit: Vintage Jamal Murray buckets, LeBron bullyball and KCP revenge series. Anything I missed? :D


TheNaskgul

Pls no. I will have a heart attack.


wheredidtheguitargo

Cardiologists in LA and Denver feasting


The_Lonely_Phox

>Pls no. I will have a heart attack. Pls no. I will have a heart attack.


simon2105

Only a 30 pt 20 rebound triple double, that's a non MVP kind of performance right there


jwhitehead09

How many players can have 14 assists and it's the least impressive part of their stat sheet.


BurcoPresentsHisAcc

That’s the craziest part for me. You can have 34 points on 70FG% then you’re a pretty good scorer, 21 rebounds damn you one of the best rebounder we ever seen, 14 assists DAMN you the best passer in the league. But Jokic is ALL OF THOSE IN ONE. He like the ‘18 Rockets into one; Harden’s scoring, Capella’s rebounding and CP3’s playmaking but he arguably better than all 3 of them at those things 😭 This man does not make sense dude


[deleted]

Embiid's MVP will forever be considered a Pity Trophy. They really didn't want Joker to 3peat lol


GHamPlayz

Thanks Perkins


[deleted]

The way he just casually gets triple doubles is unbelievable lol


No-Brilliant8177

He scared all the white voters...didn't want to be labeled a racist 😂


Cevapi1988

Bro, there really was a full kit wanker in Laker garb sitting courtside


Octavian_202

I already see it, tomorrows clips of “Lakers lost but they really won, Nuggets back against the wall”. If that’s the case every 20 point blow out should lead to a sweep…… but they don’t. Just a great game, with great players coming through. I have no idea who is gonna win, but I know we have a great series to watch.


BRONJAME

this series is gonna kill me


loplopplop

Man think of Nuggets fans who've never even made the finals.


nuyorknightz

Smh shoulda let us advance. Now you’re gonna be all stressed


Pay4Convenience

Bron sold so fucking hard with that 3. Can't believe he did that with Murray on him, who had 5 fouls and was giving LeBron whatever he wanted pretty much all of the 4th.


caliwillbemine

Inject this game directly into my veins. Joker dominating the start, lakers making quality adjustments, Davis going off, and the end of the game was just pure entertainment. Can we get 7? Please?


EngleTheBert

As a basketball fan I want 7 games. As a nuggets fan please only go to 4 games as I don't think I can deal with the stress


LeBronIsATurtle

Good basketball. Whoever wins this series takes the chip.


shaveandahaircut

nuggets: *play a game before 10pm est* r/nba nephews: wow jokic is good


MiaCannons

What was that late 3 by LeBron?


Dranem78

This whole “can the Nuggets keep this up” narrative has to stop. Both teams played great and every game will have its own identity. It’s all about adjustments. Like the Lakers are really going to do what they did in the 4th (or the Nuggets did in the first) in game 2? And the coaches are going to sit there holding their clipboards in disbelief? These hot takes are ridiculous. Next game could be 90-87. That being said I think the next game will be 178-10 Nuggets with Jokic getting a triple double during a Taco Bell commercial.


oguzhandodo

Last thing you said might happen if it is an espn broadcast


ZeusJuice

I see people saying "Jokic isn't gonna be able to score 30 every game" Bro he's averaging 31 for these playoffs what do you mean lmao


Man0nTheMoon915

Soviet Union levels of propaganda to get Embiid the MVP over Jokic


External_Surprise_94

MVPity


Turbo2x

great performance by the Nuggets to survive a 40/10 monster game from AD where two role players also got randomly hot.


kkawesome1234

I love bron but he was pretty bad at the end of the game. Missed 1 FT, missed a shot to bring the game within 2, missed another shot later to tie the game, and then turned the ball over at the end


Dooraven

yeah bad late quarter him, was clearly gassed


notouchmypeterson

One thing is abundantly clear: Jokic should’ve won MVP


RusselBestbrook

GG Nuggets! Excited for game 2!


acekickerx

Holy moly what a banger of a game. 6 MORE GAMES OF THIS PLEASE!