If Game 1 is any indication, the fans can look forward to a thrilling series going forward with all NBA-level play between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers and it may have exceeded the buildup and the hype.
The Clippers got off to a fast start on the road, in a hostile environment and seized early control on Saturday with a 15-point first half lead. But the Nuggets displayed their championship mentality and rallied in a thrilling second half before securing a 112-110 win in overtime, fueled by several game-changing plays by Russell Westbrook in the closing moments.
The start of Saturday’s game played out as a montage of everything that could possibly go wrong for the Nuggets in this series. James Harden had his way with a lack-luster Nuggets defense in route to 15 first-quarter points. Ivica Zubac lived up to his status as the anti-Joker with a strong start on both ends of the court in his much-anticipated matchup with three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. And Jokic got little help from his supporting cast that does not have a second All-Star at their disposal.
The Clippers opened a 51-36 second-quarter lead, sending the Ball Arena crowd into shock, that just two shot seasons ago cheered on Jokic and the Nuggets to the franchise’s inaugural NBA championship.
However, the Nuggets closed the half on a 13-2 run using defensive tenacity to cut their deficit to four, 53-49, at the half, and the game was a dog fight throughout the second half and overtime. Denver cut their deficit to a single point on multiple occasions before Jamal Murray’s 3 deadlocked the game at 81-81.
“It felt like one of those games where you’re just slowly crawling uphill,” Adelman said.
A Westbrook put-back gave the Nuggets their first lead of the second half at 93-92 with 3:37 left on the clock. Another Westbrook bunny retook the lead for Denver at 95-94. Then, with the Nuggets trailing 96-95 in the final 30 seconds, Westbrook, who is a below average 3-point shooter for his career, was left wide open and came through in the clutch with a corner 3 on a pass from Jokic to give the Nuggets a two-point lead.
But Harden answered with a layup in traffic to tie the game with 18.7 seconds remaining, ultimately forcing overtime after Denver failed to get off a shot on its final possession of regulation.
Aaron Gordon began the extra session with a dunk on Denver’s next possession, and the Nuggets never trailed again.
Embed from Getty ImagesA Christian Braun 3 made it a two-possession game and extended the Denver lead to four, 108-104, with 59.1 seconds remaining. Then Westbrook, who played with Denver’s starters down the stretch in regulation and for the entirety of overtime, came up with the final nail in the coffin, forcing a devasting turnover out of bounds off his former teammate Harden on a failed Clippers inbounds play.
“That’s who he is,” Jokic said after watching Westbrook hit an uncontested corner 3-pointer to give Denver a two-point lead late in regulation and then knocking the inbounds pass away from Harden with 9.6 seconds left in overtime to help seal Denver’s win.
“I just know that (inbounds) play,” from being there the previous two seasons, Westbrook said.
Jokic extended Denver’s lead to five, 112-107, with free throws on the ensuing Nuggets possession to ice the win. Norman Powell’s 3-pointer with 1 second remaining had no consequence on the outcome of the game.
The win gives Denver a 1-0 series lead in one of the most anticipated matchups of the first round following a chaotic conclusion to the regular season.
Denver entered the playoffs surrounded by controversy after Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke fired head coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth with a mere three games remaining in the regular season. With former Malone assistant David Adelman as interim head coach, the Nuggets won their final three games to lock up the No. 4 seed in the West and home-court advantage against Los Angeles.
“Russ is Russ,” interim coach Adelman said after improving to 4-0. “Defensively, he’s absolutely incredible. He was playing free safety out there. I thought a lot of the reasons why the turnovers happened, even if it wasn’t him forcing it, was just the way he was roaming around and impacting the game.
“And then offensively … he attacked,” Adelman said. “We maybe could have pulled it out and executed. But that’s what Russ does. I don’t think he’s going to change after 17 years. If he sees somebody in front of him 1-on-1, he’s going to attack. And then he made an enormous 3.”
The Clippers, meanwhile, came into the playoffs on a heater with an eight-game winning streak and an 18-3 finish to the regular season behind a resurgent Kawhi Leonard, who is a two-time champion with the San Antonio Spurs and the Toronto Raptors.
But it was the Nuggets, anchored by a core that won a championship in 2023, who proved to be the better and the better-composed team in Game 1.
“If you turn over 20 times against the team that is No. 1 in offensive transition, then you’re gonna lose the game,” lamented Clippers coach Tyronn Lue.
Jokic, as usual, led the way with a near triple-double with 29 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds and three steals. He scored 12 points in the third quarter, including a layup in transition after a steal to cut the Clippers’ lead to 75-72.
Murray, who took some heat down the stretch of the regular season as he sat out six straight games will a mysterious knee ailment, scored 21 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in a throwback to his playoff performances from the 2023 championship run. Gordon scored an efficient 25 points (8 of 14 from the field) with eight rebounds, five of which came on offense to provide the Nuggets with critical second chances down the stretch.
And Westbrook, who has carved out a late-game role with the Nuggets despite some high-profile mistakes in pressure situations, played a important 34 minutes off the bench. He took and missed several shots that the Clippers’ defense gave him in a 5-of-17 shooting night from the field. But he made up for the misses with his multitude of clutch plays late in the fourth quarter and in overtime to help seal the Denver victory.
Leonard, who engineered the hot Clippers run down the stretch of the regular season, finished with 22 points, six rebounds, two assists and three steals. But he faded into the background late on offense with just four points in the final 7:45 of the fourth quarter and overtime combined.
Zubac, who is fresh coming off a career year in the regular season, defended Jokic as well as anybody during the regular season. He played a strong game on both sides of the ball on Saturday with a double-double, with 21 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 10 of 15 from the field.
Harden led the Clippers with 43 minutes despite playing much of the game in foul trouble after picking up three in the first half. He led the Clippers with 32 points, 11 assists and six rebounds. But it was not quite enough to lead Los Angeles to victory.
The Clippers and Nuggets will face off again in Game 2 on Monday in Denver.
