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Things didn't go the Denver Nuggets' way on Sunday night.
The Nuggets lost a thriller, 129-124, against the Phoenix Suns on the road. With the loss, the series is now 2-2 heading back to Denver for Game 5. The second round is officially a best-of-3 situation.
"I think our guys are playing extremely hard. Can we play a little bit more disciplined at times, smarter at times? Of course, we can," said Michael Malone. "And sometimes those little mistakes here and there are the difference between winning and losing. The devil's in the details. And so we'll watch film, and we'll find a way to be better and hopefully go up 3-2 and send it back here"
Nikola Jokić was the star of the show for Denver, scoring 53 points to go with 11 assists. Not only was this a career-high for Jokić in the regular season and postseason, but it also set the Nuggets' record for most points scored in a playoff game.
"Obviously, an amazing scoring night. That's what we needed from him tonight," said Michael Porter Jr. about Jokić's night. "That's what they were giving up. So it seems like they're giving it up on purpose sometimes. So if they're gonna do that, we've just gotta let him score 50. I mean, obviously, Nikola likes to pass a lot, but when he's aggressive like that, it's usually a good thing."
Phoenix got excellent production from its two stars, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, who both dropped 36 points. The duo also went a combined 25-of-39 from the field.
Landry Shamet gave the Suns a spark off the bench with 19 points. He hit 5 three-pointers, 4 of which occurred in the fourth quarter.
Speaking of the bench, Phoenix bludgeoned Denver's reserves, 40-11, in scoring. The Suns also outshot the Nuggets from three, 44.8 percent to 31.8 percent, and outscored Denver in fastbreak points for the second-straight game, 20-10. They also outrebounded the Nuggets, 37-32, making the Nuggets 0-2 in the postseason when losing on the glass.
"Devin Booker going off in transition is, you know, there is no game plan for that. So get back and show them a crowd. So that's where it starts for us in transition. That's been a huge issue in Game 1, Game 3, and now Game 4," said Malone about Phoenix's fastbreak scoring.
Porter Jr. was a man on a mission to start the game, attacking the glass with ferocity for 6 early rebounds to go with 7 points. As he had in Game 3, however, Booker would not let his team get into serious trouble. Booker put up 13 points off mostly downhill looks, and when Kevin Durant splashed a jumper at the buzzer, Phoenix was down just 34-32.
Phoenix took a lead at the 8:30 mark when T.J. Warren made a twisting layup under the rim and Cam Payne hit a transition three to give the Suns a 43-39 advantage. Booker kept pouring it in and attacking in transition, totaling 19 points before halftime. Jokić, meanwhile, bullied the Suns inside for 24 points before the break. Phoenix finished the half ahead, 63-61.
Jokić and Booker continued battling in the third quarter. Jokić dropped 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting, while Booker went a perfect 6-for-6 from the field for 14 points, including a ridiculous pull-up three-pointer at the end of the quarter to give the Suns a 98-92 lead heading into the fourth.
Phoenix took its largest lead of the game when Landry Shamet hit a three-pointer to put the Suns ahead by 7 points. Then, another three-pointer from Shamet. When the Nuggets doubled Booker at the top of the key, Shamet hit yet another three to make it a 9-point game. Though Denver got 2 points out of a Jokić floater in transition when Warren missed a corner three, it was Shamet, once more, who nailed his fifth three to carve out a double-digit advantage.
Jokić was determined to not let his team lose, knocking in two close-range buckets and dishing a pass to Jamal Murray for his 10th assist on a gorgeous give-and-go. That made it a 3-point game. But then, the Nuggets were forced to foul T.J. Warren with 22 seconds remaining. Warren hit both free throws, and when Jokić missed a shot at the rim, that sealed the deal.
Milestone Watch
- Nikola Jokić's 53 points were a career-high for him in both the postseason and regular season. He also set the Nuggets' all-time record for most points in a playoff game.
- Jokić became the first center to ever drop 50+ points and 10+ assists in a playoff game. In fact, he was just the fifth player in NBA history to ever record that stat line in the postseason.
- Jokić passed Alex English for first place on the Nuggets' playoff all-time scoring leaders list with 1,541 points.
- Jamal Murray reached 250 career assists in the playoffs after reaching 1,000 career playoff points in Game 3.
- Denver’s bench scored just 11 points, the 5th-fewest scored in a playoff game since 1983.
- Game 4 was just the 7th NBA playoff game since the NBA-ABA merger in which both teams shot at least 56 percent from the field.
- Denver's 56.2 shooting was its highest field goal percentage ever in a playoff loss.
Denver will head back home for Game 5 on Tuesday at 8 p.m. MT.
