LOS ANGELES — What LeBron can do, Joker can do crazier.
A 38-year-old LeBron James highlighted his 31-point first half Monday with a circus 3-pointer that wasn’t even a shot. It was an attempted pass toward the rim.
So how did Nikola Jokic respond? With a pair of high-arcing, clumsy yet graceful, ugly yet acrobatic 3s with hands in his face throughout the remainder of Game 4. It helped the Nuggets earn their first-ever playoff series sweep and the franchise’s first-ever trip to the NBA Finals.
Jokic, already a two-time league MVP, was named MVP of the Western Conference Finals after Game 4. It was a fitting coronation after Jokic broke Wilt Chamberlain’s all-time record with his eighth triple-double of this postseason: 30 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists.
“We always talk about an aggressive Nikola Jokic is a very effective Nikola Jokic,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said during the series.
Jokic registered a triple-double in three out of four games in the series, averaging 27.8 points, 14.5 rebounds and 11.8 assists — all while facing a revolving door of matchups and coverages from Los Angeles, which included elite defensive center Anthony Davis.
Jokic played through foul trouble to lead Denver with 15 points in the fourth quarter of Game 3, and he delivered again with a go-ahead bucket in the final minute of Game 4 on Monday night.
Malone said Jokic hasn’t proven anything to him in this playoff run because “I already know he’s a great player.”
However, the coach continued, “he’s showing other people nationally that he’s real. What he’s doing is real. The MVPs are real. The triple-doubles are real. … 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, enough of the silliness. The guy is a great player; give him his damn respect. Stop chopping him down at the knees. He’s a great player, and give him the respect he deserves.”
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