It took the basketball team, located on the plateau just east of the Rocky Mountains, 56 years and 38 playoff appearances to finally reach the pinnacle of the sport.
The game was joined by an unheralded center from Serbia, who has become one of the most formidable players in the game, and a Canadian point guard who has found himself again after a long and difficult recovery from a career-threatening knee injury. It took patience, cooperation, and a discipline born of learning how to try, fail, and keep climbing a little higher.
The Denver Nuggets are NBA champions.
On Monday night, they won their first title in franchise history on their home court at Ball Arena, 5,280 feet above sea level. This is the highest elevation ever to win an NBA championship. Led by center Nikola Jokic and point guard Jamal Murray and backed by the rest of the indomitable eight-man rotation, the Nuggets beat the Miami Heat 94-89 in Game 5.
Jokic was named best player of the final.
“I have news for everyone out there,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone as the crowd roared. “I can’t be satisfied with just one! I want more! I want more!”
The decisive match was neither clean nor easy. Throughout the first three quarters, Denver struggled to make 3-point shots or make free throws. The Nuggets flipped the ball carelessly. The Heat had a seven-point lead at halftime, but were one after the third quarter.
But in the fourth quarter, the Nuggets were determined to win the title. With about 10 minutes and 59 seconds remaining, Murray hit a 3-point shot (the Nuggets’ third of the game) to give the Nuggets a 4-point lead. Murray leaped across the court as the Heat called a timeout. It was Denver’s biggest lead since the first quarter.
Murray then attacked again. This time, Aaron Gordon blocked heat guard Kyle Lowry’s jumper, which led to Murray’s transition basket to give the Nuggets a five-point lead.
Then, with less than 30 seconds remaining, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope stole a pass from Jimmy Butler to Max Strass and made two free throws to give Denver a three-point lead.
The Nuggets leave the club in question. Currently, there are only 10 teams in the league that have never won an NBA championship. Most recently, five teams have reached the finals and lost, including the Phoenix Suns, who lost three times in 2021.
But the Nuggets never quite got there, at least not in the NBA. They reached the championship series for the first time since losing to the New York Nets in the 1976 National Basketball Association finals.
The long drought helps explain why the Nuggets were underrated all season. Pundits and oddsmakers questioned their ability to win, even after taking first place in the Western Conference in December and never letting it go.
People wondered if Jokic would be able to lead the team this far despite his stellar play – after all, he had never led the Nuggets to the conference finals. Those questions may have prevented him from winning the Player of the Year award for the third year in a row, but many say the credit should go only to champions.
Some wondered if Murray would ever return to the elite level he played in 2021, but a knee injury just before the playoffs left Murray and Denver on a two-year journey before completely resetting. Became.
Along the way, some roleplayers have found their own progress, even if it received little attention.
Caldwell-Pope, whom the Nuggets acquired in a trade last offseason, added defense, shooting and championship experience. In a few playoff games, he brought a ring he won with the Lakers in 2020 and let his teammates hold it. nobody has
“They gave me the opportunity to be a leader here because of my championship. Let them know how hard it is,” Caldwell Pope said. “I’m just trying to keep them motivated.”
Gordon, who was traded to the Nuggets in March 2021, was the Orlando Magic’s offensive star, but fortunately turned into a defensive stopper.
“I’m not here for honor,” Gordon said. “I am here to win.”
Bruce Brown provided an aggressive spark. Jeff Green added a veteran poise. Rookie Christian Brown displayed a youthful, fearless play that paid off in the final.
The Nuggets defeated the dysfunctional Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round and then beat the Suns in six games. They swept the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals and then waited a week to decide who they would face in the finals.
Like the Nuggets, the Heat had a 3-0 lead in the Conference Finals series. However, they staggered as the Boston Celtics fought back in the East, winning the next three games and forcing a decisive Game 7.
“When Boston won Game 6, we sat for so long that I thought we weren’t in the playoffs anymore,” Green said. “Because we were only watching over them.”
Driven by relentless star Butler, Miami won Game 7, this time reaching the finals for the franchise’s seventh time as the No. 8 seed. A win would give Miami its first title in a decade, but it was a much more unexpected win than their previous three.
If people ignored Denver this season, they completely ignored Miami. The Heat narrowly made it to the playoffs, but their stumbling block against Boston cast skepticism even among their most devoted followers. When Denver first seemed to have the world on their side, they had an themselves-versus-the-worlds mentality heading into the final.
And if that boost of confidence has flowed into the Nuggets’ heads, who can blame them?
Denver won Game 1 and Jokic made a triple-double. The Nuggets then began celebrating as if they felt the victory parade already ringing. Despite Jokic scoring 41 points in Game 2, he lost focus and allowed Miami to steal. Denver coach Malone chided the Nuggets and questioned their efforts. He won’t have to do that anymore.
Jokic and Murray each achieved triple-doubles in Game 3 in front of a rowdy crowd in Miami. In Game 4, Brown scored 11 points in the fourth quarter to fuel Miami’s despair.
After Game 4, the Nuggets’ locker room had some unusual visitors. Nuggets owner E. Stanley Kroenke and his son, team chairman Josh Kroenke, each held a can of Coors and smiled brightly. The Nuggets had just led 3-1 in the finals and felt the franchise’s first championship was on the horizon. Only one of the finalists, his team, the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, has ever managed to get out of that deep hole.
However, Nuggets players and coaches refused to acknowledge how close they were. They remembered what happened after Game 1.
“We need another win,” Jokic said after Game 4. we were not comfortable. We were still hopeless. we still want it. “
Murray showed a little more confidence. “We are just ready to win the championship,” he said. “We have the tools to make it happen. It’s been on our minds for a while.”
Some say 56 years.
