It's been a magical run for the Denver Nuggets.
Denver advanced to their first NBA Finals in franchise history on Monday after the 113-111 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
The victory emblematized this enchanting playoff run. Nikola Jokić hit a pair of moonball threes with the shot clock expiring. Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon combined to block LeBron James' shot in the final four seconds of the game. The Nuggets as a team turned a 15-point halftime deficit into a 5-point third quarter lead, a 20-point swing.
Denver pulled off their first sweep in franchise history. Fittingly, it came against the Lakers. Denver had never defeated Los Angeles in a playoff series until Monday, so there's some history there. But it goes deeper than that. This specific iteration of the Lakers with Anthony Davis and James leading the charge robbed the Nuggets of a Finals appearance four years ago in the NBA Bubble. The win meant a little extra.
James offered high praise after Game 4.
“Me and AD were just talking in the locker room for a little bit. I think we came to the consensus that this is, if not one of the best, probably the best team that we’ve played since we’ve been together for our four years. They're just well orchestrated, well put-together," said James about the 2022-23 Nuggets. "They have scoring. They have shooting. They have playmaking. They have smarts. They have depth."
Denver has beaten its playoff opponents by an average of 9.2 points per 100 possessions through three rounds. That's the largest margin of victory in five years (the Milwaukee Bucks put up a net rating of +9.5 in the 2019 postseason, for context).
Denver is currently riding a six-game winning streak after dropping two games on the road against Phoenix, the longest stretch of consecutive playoff victories in franchise history. They're one Miami HEAT victory away from having the opportunity to extend that winning streak at home... where they've been utterly unconquerable in the 2023 postseason.
The Nuggets are a perfect 8-0 at Ball Arena so far. The last team to go undefeated at home in the playoffs was the 2016-17 Golden State Warriors, who cruised to an NBA Finals victory in five games in the first season of the Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry era.
"The crowd was phenomenal," said Michael Malone after Game 2 against Los Angeles. "Huge shoutout to our fans for continuing to make Ball Arena just a hell of a homecourt advantage. We really appreciate that."
Denver's dominance has come on both ends.
There was a lot of chatter about the porousness of Denver's defense, which finished just 17th in defensive rating during the regular season. Many listed defense as a reason to bet against Denver to come out of the Western Conference.
"They're gonna put that three-time MVP in about 75 pick-and-rolls in the playoffs," said a former player about Jokić's defense on television back in February.
Instead, Jokić has spearheaded a championship-level defense.
Denver has held its playoff opponents to 5.3 points per 100 possessions below their regular season offensive ratings. The Nuggets honed in on Los Angeles' biggest offensive strength, scoring in the paint. The Lakers' field goal percentage at the basket declined with each game of the Conference Finals.
LAKERS AT-RIM SHOOTING PER GAME:
Game 1: 84.2 percent
Game 2: 65.4 percent
Game 3: 60.7 percent
Game 4: 48.3 percent
"I'm always telling my teammates: defense is going to win games for us, and it's gonna win us a championship. When we can continue to defend, get stops when we need them, or get multiple stops, we're gonna be great," said Kentavious Caldwell-Pope after Game 3. "I feel like my teammates, we're doing a great job of getting stops when we need them, especially down the stretch, and closing out games."
The Nuggets were even deadlier on offense versus the Lakers. Los Angeles entered the Western Conference Finals with the best defensive rating of the postseason by holding opponents to just 106.9 points per 100 possessions. At that point, this was a better defensive rating than that of the 2020 Lakers, who won the NBA title.
Denver absolutely bludgeoned that top-ranked defense and averaged 123.2 points per 100 possessions in the Conference Finals. For context, the Sacramento Kings, who set the all-time record for offensive rating in the regular season, averaged 119.7 points per 100 possessions this season.
Denver scored at a record-breaking pace against a premier postseason defense.
At the center of this absurd offensive performance was two-time MVP, Nikola Jokić, who averaged a triple-double for the second-straight playoff round. Jokić also became the first player to ever average at least 25 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists in a Conference Finals. He passed Wilt Chamberlain for the most triple-doubles in a playoff run with 8 (and counting!).
His final averages at the end of the Western Conference Finals: 27.8 points, 11.8 assists, and 14.5 rebounds to go with 1.3 blocks and 1.3 steals. He dominated every aspect of the game against an opponent with two Hall of Famers and ended up winning the Western Conference Finals MVP.
"I think Nikola has gone through three rounds now where he's averaging a triple-double in the playoffs. Have you seen any stat padding out there? I'm serious. Like, enough of the silliness," said Malone after Game 4. "The guy's a great player, give his damn respect. Stop chopping him down at the knees, man, he's a great player and give him the respect he deserves."
His running mate, Jamal Murray, was just as prolific. He became the first player to average at least 30 points on 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point range, and 90 percent from the free-throw line in a Conference Finals. Murray put up 53 combined points in three quarters between Games 2 and 3, the most over a three-quarter span in the last 25 postseasons.
Murray's final averages against Los Angeles: 32.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 5.3 rebounds. He shot 52.7 percent from the field, 40.5 percent from three, and 95 percent from the line. It was an incredible return to the big stage for a player who missed two postseasons with an ACL tear.
"I'm gonna say Jamal," Jokić said after Game 4 about who he's happiest for. "Just because he was injured. He was getting through a tough period. He thought they were gonna trade him. The way how he is leading us, how he is controlling the game and making shots. He's playing really well. I'm so happy for Jamal just to prove that he's worked and that he's a special player in this league."
Denver's third banana, Michael Porter Jr., showed tremendous growth in the Conference Finals. As one of the best shooters in the entire world, Porter Jr. did not disappoint in that category and connected on 42.4 percent of his three-pointers against Los Angeles. But it was the other aspects of his game that made the Conference Finals such a special series for MPJ, averaging career-highs in both rebounds (9.3) and assists (3) in a playoff series.
What makes Denver different, though, is that their success is tied to more than just three players. The Nuggets had six guys finish the Conference Finals averaging double-digit points: the players named above, Bruce Brown, Aaron Gordon, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
Slowing Denver down isn't as simple as just stopping one or two players, and that's what makes them such a frightening playoff matchup. They can dice defenses up in multiple ways and have six players on the roster capable of going off for 20+ points at any moment.
"It's just a great mixture. It's a great group of guys. The camaraderie is there, the chemistry is there, the talent is there, the IQ is there, and the unselfishness is there," said Aaron Gordon about his squad. "It's really a brotherhood and we really do it for the person next to us, and it's rare. It's rare in this league to find a team that has a bunch of unselfish guys that buy-in and really do it for the man next to them."
It's been a heck of a playoff run for the 2022-23 Denver Nuggets. All that's missing is four more playoff wins and another golden trophy.
