The champions are also in great shape in the new season and remain undefeated: The Denver Nuggets have easily overcome the supposedly high hurdle of Oklahoma City.
Unstoppable, not even by Chet Holmgren: Nikola Jokic. NBAE via Getty Images
28 points, 14 rebounds, five assists – and an early end. What more could a basketball player’s heart want? League dominator Nikola Jokic had another great day in his successful career with his Denver Nuggets’ 128:95 victory over the highly traded and highly talented Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Serb hit twelve of his 16 shots and led the champions to their third win in the third game, while OKC suffered the first setback after two successes.
Jokic was mainly supported by Michael Porter Jr. (20/9 rebounds) and Jamal Murray (19).
For the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander certainly had big plans for the duel with the defending champions. It was a horror evening for “SGA”, who only managed two of 16 attempts from the field and were stuck with seven points.
Special reception for Holmgren
At the top of the home team’s box score on a special Sunday: Chet Holmgren. The number two pick in 2022 missed his entire first NBA season due to a foot injury. At his first home game for the Thunder, he was greeted with loud applause on the floor – and thanked him with 19 points. The lean power forward led his colors, but couldn’t prevent the defeat.
With a Jokic in this MVP frame, Denver will be hard to stop. In the first half of the game alone, the Serb scored 22 points, closed Q2 with a layup at the buzzer and sent OKC into the locker room with a 51:69 hole. At this point, Gilgeous-Alexander had not converted any of nine throws. Things weren’t going to get much better on this black Sunday for him.
After away wins in Chicago and Cleveland, OKC failed to open in front of their own fans, while the Nuggets were able to underline their ambitions this season with this statement victory. Denver continues at home against the Utah Jazz on Monday (local time), while the Thunder host the Detroit Pistons.
2023-10-29 22:30:58
#Match #report #Jokic #dominates #SGA #horror #evening #Oklahoma #City #Thunder #Denver #Nuggets #Week #National #Basketball #Association
