A Tyrese Haliburton turnover.
…or a missed shot by Nikola Jokic?
Which will come first?
Because neither happened on Thursday night π€―
THE LINEUP π
- π₯ Must see from Thursday
- π Wemby, Hali & Jokic are leaving
- π§ Jamal Murray in the clutch
- πΏ 2023 in review: Q2
- πΈ 2023 in Photos: Q2
πΊ Bucks at Cavs (7:30 ET, NBA TV): The Cavs have won five of their last six, while the Bucks have won eight of their last nine. This is the first of four meetings this season that will all take place over the next month.
πΊ Grizzlies at Clippers (10:30 a.m. ET, NBA TV): Keep an eye on Ja Morant’s status ahead of this game in LA. He missed Thursday’s game (illness). The Grizz are 4-0 with Morant in the lineup and 6-20 when he’s out.
1. FRIDAY MORNING MUST SEE
Must-see projects from Anthony Davis, Anthony Edwards, Brandon Ingram and more characterize Thursday’s Top 10.
π Falling numbers
- 21 PTS, 20 AST, 0 TOV: Tyrese Haliburton joined Chris Paul (2016) as the only players in NBA history with 20+ points, 20+ assists and 0 turnovers in a game. Haliburton became the first to add 5+ 3 as well
- 26 PTS, 14 REB, 10 AST, 11-11 FG: Nikola Jokic joins Wilt Chamberlain as the only players in NBA history to record multiple triple double while shooting 100% from the field (at least 10 attempts)
- 30 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST, 7 BLK, 24 MIN: Victor Wembanyama joined David Robinson as the only rookies to record 30+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists and 7+ blocks in a game. Wemby is the first player with 30+ points and 7+ blocks in less than 30 minutes
π₯ Shocking games
2. WEMBY, HALI & JOKIC GO OFF
π€ Spurs 118, Blazers 105: Victor Webanyama (30 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 7 points) filled the stat sheet and the cylindrical roller in 24 minutes of work for San Antonio ended a five game losing streak
ποΈ Pacers 120, Bulls 104: Tyrese Haliburton ate and his teammates spun (Clyde Frazier voice) as the NBA’s assist leader gave 20 cents without turnover
βοΈ Nuggets 142, Grizzlies 105: Nikola Jokic (26 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists) has recorded 116 career triple-doubles, but this was only his third without missing a shot (October 20, 2018: 11-11 FG, January 9, 2023: 5-5 FG)
πΊ Wolves 118, Mavs 110: Anthony Edwards was in attack mode, scoring a season-high 44 points (6 2s, 6 3s, 14 FTs) to lead Wolves past Luka-less Mavs (quad)
π Celtics 128, Pistons 122 (OT): Kristaps Porzingis had a season-high 35 points for Boston rally from 21 down for the overtime win. Cade Cunningham had 31 for Detroit, which lost its 28th straight, tying the longest streak in major league history (Philadelphia, March 27-November 29, 2015)
βοΈ Pelicans 112, Jazz 105: Zion Williamson (21 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists) fell two assists short of a triple-double, while Brandon Ingram (26) and CJ McCollum (22) scored 48 points.
π Lakers 133, Hornets 112: Anthony Davis (26 points, 8 rebounds, 4 d.) and LeBron James (17 points, 11 st) led the Lakers to the court and it was celebrating this Austin Reaves move while on the bench
π₯ Heat 114, Warriors 102: Tyler Herro had 26 points while Bam Adebayo added 17 and 11 boards, leading Miami to its fourth straight road game and 10th of the season
3. JAMAL MURRAY IN THE KLUTCH
Jamal Murray’s training regimen helped build the mental and physical toughness needed to overcome his knee injury.
Before Denver hosts OKC tonight (9 ET, NBA App) in a No. 2 vs. No. 3 Western Conference matchup, we look at the importance of Jamal Murray, whose impact on the Nuggets can be felt both on and off the court, as evidenced by Denver’s title run 2023.
- Even with the league MVP in 2021 and 2022, Denver couldn’t get past the second round without Murray, who was repairing a torn ACL
- As soon as Murray recovered and shook off the rust, Denver was unstoppable, finished first in the West and went 16-4 in the playoffs
What does that mean for this season? The Nuggets enter Friday second in the West at 23-10 (.697).
- With Murray: 15-4 (.789) β winning percentage that would trail only Boston (.800)
- Without Murray: 8-6 (.571) β would have Denver hovering around the Play-In
Not only does Murray give Denver a second star to complement Jokic, but it gives them one of the league’s top players in the clutch.
Denver is 12-6 in clutch games β tied for the fourth-highest winning percentage in the NBA β but is even better with Murray on the court.
- With Murray: 7-2 (.778) β would rank second behind Minnesota (.909)
- Without Murray: 5-4 (.556) β would rank 13th
In 22 clutch minutes, Murray has 19 points on 66.7 percent shooting from the field and 3. He also has seven assists to just one turnover.
- Murray is in third place in Nuggets history in clutch points (424), trailing only Jokic and Mel
- Fourth on clutch assists (95). First in three-point clutch (46)
4. 2023 IN REVIEW: NBA PLAYOFFS
Our review for the year 2023 continues with highlights and performances from the 2023 postseason. (Got time today? Press the Playoff Hub for your nostalgia needs)
AT&T Play-In Tournament
π₯ The Heat’s historic run begins … with a loss. Before becoming the first Play-In Tournament team to win a Playoff series and reach the Finals, Miami lost to Atlanta in Game 7 vs. 8. To get in, Miami had to beat Chicago in an elimination game, where ( in a preview of things to come) took 31 from Jimmy Butler and Max Struss.
πΊ Minnesota, too! The Lakers beat the Wolves in OT to open the Play-In out West, securing the 7th seed after losing 10 of their first 12 games to start the year. To clinch their own Playoff spot, the Wolves got double-doubles from KAT and Rudy Gobert to beat an upstart OKC team in an elimination game (signaling some things to come)
First round
π₯ Butler, Heat upset Bucks: Butler was a supernova in that five-game, 8-on-1 upset, averaging 37.6 points on 60% shooting against a top-four defense and an elite perimeter defender in Jrue Holiday. Milwaukee had no answer for the playoffs Jimmy, who scored a Heat playoff record 56 and 42 in the last two games of the series
π The Lakers upset the Grizzlies: After opening the season 2-10, the Lakers clawed their way back into the playoffs, earning the 7th seed through the Play-In. In the first round, LeBron continued to defy Father Time, Rui Hachimura couldn’t miss and Austin Reaves delivered his “I’m Him” ββmoment. in his playoff debut.
π§ π³ Curry, Warriors top Kings in 7: NorCal’s first playoff game produced an epic seven game series. The Kings went up 2-0 at home. The Warriors won the next three. The Kings avoided a shutout in the Bay to force a Game 7. Then Steph Curry came to the SAC and dropped aGame 7 records 50 points to close the beam for the season
Conference Semifinals
π Tatum takes down the Sixers: Curry’s Game 7 record only lasted two weeks as Jayson Tatum scored 51 points to lead the Celtics to the Conference Finals for the third time in four years while handing Philly their third consecutive Eastern Conference exit.
π LeBron vs. Steph (again): After meeting in four straight Finals (2015-18), LeBron James and Steph Curry met in the playoffs for the first time in five years. LA took control of the series in Game 4 back Lonnie Walker’s huge 4th quarter. The Lakers won the series in six, giving LeBron a record 41st playoff series win.
βοΈ Nuggets pass test: Only one team has beaten the Nuggets more than once in the 2023 playoffs β the Suns, who tied the series at 2-2 behind outstanding games from Booker and Durant, who combined for 86 and 72 in their two wins before Denver closed out the streak at six.
π₯ The Knicks’ opponents from the Heat: Miami became only the second No. 8 seed to reach the NBA Finals. And one round later, they defeated the only other franchise to do so β New York in 1999 β along the way.
Conference Finals
π DΓ©jΓ Vu: 2023 Final Four Matches 2020 Playoffs in Orlando
β°οΈ Nuggets sweep Lakers: This series was much closer than 4-0 would indicate, with three of the games decided by six points or less. But the brilliance of Jamal Murray (32.5 ppg on 53/41/95 shots) and Nikola Jokic (27.8 points, 14.5 rebounds, 11.8 assists, this unreal shot) ended LA’s streak
π₯ Heat survives Celtics: Boston was trying to become the first team in 150 tries to win a series after trailing 0-3. They forced Game 7 on Derrick White’s buzzer beater bombastic lust β second straight season Heat & Celtics met in ECF Game 7 β but Heat went on to make history, winning Game 7 in Boston
The Denver Nuggets are celebrating their first championship in franchise history after defeating the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.
NBA Finals
π¬ Jokic & Murray’s Historic Game 3: With the series tied 1-1, Jokic and Murray recorded the first triple-doubles as teammates in a Finals game, and the first 30+ points triple-double by teammates; in any NBA game.
π Nuggets win 1st championship: After 47 years, the Nuggets were finally crowned NBA champions, winning their first title since joining the NBA in 1976 and ending Miami’s magical run from the Play-Ins to the Finals. Relive the entire journey with the Bring It Home documentation.
π Jokic named Finals MVP: Joker became the first player to lead all playoffs in points (600), rebounds (269) and assists (190) en route to winning the Bill Russell Finals MVP.
π¦ A different kind of splash: In an iconic Finals moment, the cameras caught us Joker throwing Murray into the pool after the Nuggets won their first title
π£οΈ Jokic signs: “Work done, we can go home now.“
5. 2023 IN PHOTOS: NBA PLAYOFFS
Tension and electricity. Pressure and adversity. Joy and agony.
Capturing the emotions of playoff basketball is an art form. Here are six masterpieces from the 2023 NBA playoffs.