Nikola Jokic scored 16 of his 35 points in the last quarter, and Aaron Gordon had 27 points on 11-for-12 shooting to drive the Denver Nuggets to a series-tying 115-107 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals.
Jamal Murray scored 12 of his 19 points in the third quarter for the Nuggets in a carryover of momentum from his buzzer-beating shot from behind half court, and the Wolves were only within single digits in the second half for a total of 3:19.
Anthony Edwards scored 44 points in another impressive performance for Minnesota, making 16 of 25 shots. Despite a 42-31 rebounding advantage, the Wolves lost for the second time at home to the defending NBA champions, who were motivated after losing the first two games of the series on their home court.
“Game 2 definitely woke us up,” Murray said. “We realized we can’t hold ourselves back.”
The series returns to Denver for Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Mike Conley scored 15 points, Karl-Anthony Towns only made 5 of 18 shots for 13 points and 12 rebounds, and Rudy Gobert scored 11 points and grabbed 14 rebounds late in the game. The Wolves were still struggling at home for a second consecutive game.
The Nuggets scored eight consecutive points in 20 seconds to end the first half, featuring Murray’s unlikely shot.
Gordon didn’t miss a shot until there was 3:39 left. Most importantly, he took the lead in guarding Towns and even took some turns trying to slow Edwards.
“The shot-making, the play-making, the physicality, the defense on two All-Stars, so much is being asked of him right now,” coach Mike Malone said. “What you love about Aaron Gordon since Day 1, when he put on that Nuggets uniform, It’s always been about the Nuggets first. He is truly selfless.”
The three days off between Games 2 and 3 were not beneficial for the Wolves, resulting in a 27-point loss. Coach Chris Finch said they felt “fat and lazy” after receiving a lot of praise for their performance in Denver. They needed to regain their edge immediately to maintain the crowd's enthusiasm, and Edwards led that response.
The 2020 top draft pick scored nine points in the first four-plus minutes before Murray even touched the ball, with Gordon and Jokic sharing the point guard responsibilities to ease the pressure on Murray and his injured left calf muscle.
After a subdued Game 3, Edwards was determined to lead the Wolves to victory, as the Nuggets anticipated. Their focus on him in the lane wasn't enough, as he scored from all over the court, but the rest of the Wolves often failed to capitalize on the Nuggets' focus on Edwards.
They missed close shots at the rim, not just corner 3s. Towns missed his first seven shots, and while his effort and defense remained strong, he struggled to score, rarely drawing the fouls he sought.
The Wolves displayed their top-notch defense and strong bench in the first two games, but the Nuggets replicated that strategy on the road. When their secondary scorers and bench players are hitting their shots, they are very difficult to defeat.
Gordon, Justin Holiday (10 points), Christian Braun (11 points) and Reggie Jackson (six points) combined to make 8 out of 11 shots from 3-point range. This helped a 26-4 scoring streak that spanned the first and second quarters, and almost all of those points were scored while Gobert, a four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, was on the bench resting.
HAWKS SECURE TOP PICK IN DRAFT
CHICAGO (AP) — The Atlanta Hawks faced low chances of winning, but they left with their most significant victory in years.
The Hawks won the NBA draft lottery on Sunday, getting the No. 1 pick and a potential key player in a year where the top choice is not clear.
“I can at least go home and tell my wife on Mother’s Day, ‘Hey, at least we won the lottery,’” general manager Landry Fields said. “That’s her present. Yeah, there we go.”
The Hawks defied the odds of only 3% after finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference at 36-46. They lost their last six regular-season games and were defeated by the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the play-in tournament.
“It was a surprise,” said Fields, who smiled widely when deputy commissioner Mark Tatum revealed the Hawks as the winners. “When it wasn’t us between 10 and 12, and we made it to the top four, I thought, alright, we have a real chance. It was a bit of a shock, but a lot of excitement.”
The Hawks have not won a postseason series since reaching the Eastern Conference finals in 2021. They were eliminated in the first round in 2022 and 2023.
Atlanta has important decisions to make this offseason, including whether to split up its backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. Fields can build with the No. 1 pick — if he keeps it — although it’s uncertain who will be chosen first after Victor Wembanyama was the clear pick for San Antonio last year.
“Our group has been excellent,” Fields said. “There’s a lot of trust. They've put in the work. We'll stick to our process and go from there.”
Washington, Houston, San Antonio, and Detroit completed the top five. The draft is on June 26-27 in Brooklyn.
Houston coach Ime Udoka was delighted to receive the third pick after the Rockets finished 41-41 and missed the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year.
“It was a nice surprise to move up the way we did,” he said. “I believe there are many qualified candidates out there.”
Washington and Detroit had the best chances of getting the top pick at 14%. Only four teams have won the lottery with lower odds than Atlanta, with the biggest underdog being Orlando at 1.52% in 1993. The Magic made a significant draft night trade with Golden State, exchanging the rights to Chris Webber for the rights to Penny Hardaway along with three future first-round picks.
San Antonio found a once-in-a-generation player last year in Wembanyama. The team that previously drafted David Robinson and Tim Duncan with the No. 1 overall pick secured its next great big man, and the Frenchman delivered one of the best rookie seasons in NBA history.
Fields challenged the notion that this year’s class is weak, stating that there are future All-Stars.
He said that every group of potential new players has some very good athletes in it.
The top choice might be from France again, with center Alex Sarr or sharp-shooting forward Zaccharie Risacher, but it's not guaranteed. UConn guard Stephon Castle and Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham are all expected to be chosen early.
Sarr, who is 7 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 224 pounds, has the size and movement that teams want and can defend on the perimeter when he's not blocking shots near the basket. The 19-year-old from Toulouse is known for his quickness around the rim, although he could use more strength. It would also be helpful if he became a more consistent 3-point shooter.
Sarr, whose brother Olivier plays for Oklahoma City, played in Australia’s National Basketball League last season.
Risacher, who was born in Spain and raised in France, is known as a talented but inconsistent shooter for JL Bourg, whether he’s coming off screens or shooting 3-pointers. He often defends the opposing team’s best player.
Castle joined Andre Drummond in 2012 as UConn’s only one-and-done players when he entered the draft in April after the Huskies’ recent NCAA championship run. The 6-foot-6 guard averaged 11.1 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists while often guarding the top perimeter player on the other team.
Both Sheppard and Dillingham were substitutes in their single college seasons.
Sheppard, who was selected as the Southeastern Conference’s best freshman by coaches, was one of the conference’s top playmakers and outside shooters. He was Kentucky’s third leading scorer at 12.5 points per game and had the highest number of steals in the SEC at 2.5 per game, which was the eighth highest in the country, despite starting in just five of 33 games.
Dillingham was voted as the top substitute in the SEC after averaging 15.2 points and 3.9 assists. Kentucky tied for second place in the conference and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, only to be eliminated by Oakland in the round of 64. Coach John Calipari then left after 15 years for Arkansas.
