As Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic torched the nets on the way to a 40-point night, all the Minnesota Timberwolves could do was watch. A paragon of a performance, it was only fitting that Jokic received his third MVP award before tip-off.
Jokić receives his third MVP trophy 🚨🏆 pic.twitter.com/DPjKIjk5WO
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 15, 2024
The Serbian superstar also recorded 13 rebounds and seven assists while matched up with the Timberwolves’ Twin Towers.
Nikola Jokic put the stamp on receiving his third #KiaMVP with a HISTORIC performance to power the @nuggets to a 3-2 series lead!
🃏 40 PTS
🃏 13 REB
🃏 7 REB
🃏 0 TO
🃏 15-22 FGMGame 6: Thursday, 8:30pm/et on ESPN pic.twitter.com/VnA2Z8N3tq
— NBA (@NBA) May 15, 2024
With his whirling dervish play style, Jokic often had Rudy Gobert teetering. Of course, the story this series has been that the four-time Defensive Player of the Year can’t guard Jokic at all. That’s not quite true, as the Frenchman usually makes the Nuggets’ cornerstone work pretty hard for his points.
People say Gobert can’t guard Jokic but that’s not necessarily true. The fact is, Jokic’s just an all-time great player. The matchup between him and Gobert reminds me of Bron vs Kawhi in the 2014 Finals. Kawhi won MVP for his defense, yet Bron averaged 28 PPG on 57-52-79 splits pic.twitter.com/D2Hm1mfLvP
— ℚ (@qshironalberti3) May 15, 2024
Like Kawhi Leonard when he was matched up against LeBron James in the 2014 NBA Finals, sometimes that’s all a player can do, no matter how well they play defense.
Timberwolves Believe Nikola Jokic is ‘Best Player in NBA’
After the Timberwolves fell to the Nuggets in Game 5, Gobert was transparent about what it was like guarding Jokic.
“He was in the zone,” Gobert laughs. “I mean, a couple shots I think I actually blocked and the ball went in.”
“It was just incredible in that quarter,” he continues, noting Jokic’s 16-point effort in the third. “He put the team on his back and he was making everything. Drawing fouls, getting to the line.”
Rudy Gobert feels he blocked Nikola Jokic multiple times during his third quarter but they went in anyway.
“He was in the zone, put the team on his back.” pic.twitter.com/Xt1ZBzCQIa
— Jake Shapiro (@Shapalicious) May 15, 2024
“…I think there are things we should have done better,” Gobert concludes. “But there’s also plays he made that I think are tough to overcome.”
Gobert is right. As previously mentioned, he’s often made Jokic take tough shots, getting his hands on quite a few of them. Indeed, he’s averaged 1.5 blocks per game in the Western Conference Semifinals. Many shots that Jokic makes are all but impossible, seemingly defying the laws of physics with their arcs and angles.
However, there were a few bunnies that Jokic was able to convert at the rim after Gobert was drawn out the paint. If involved in the action, Jokic was able to put Gobert on his heels by driving aggressively from the perimeter. When Gobert was away from the action, Jokic darted through creases in the defense, playing the wide receiver role that his teammates usually have.
Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards also spoke about Jokic’s performance, taking it one step further. To Edwards, Minnesota simply was at the mercy of the best player in the NBA.
“I just laugh,” he says. “That’s all I can do. I can’t be mad, because he good, man.”
“I think I said that after Game 1 when we won, and Game 2: He’s the MVP,” Edwards continues. “He’s the best player in the NBA. He showed it the last three games, three games in a row.”
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards on Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic’s Game 5: “I just laugh. That’s all I can do. I can’t be mad. … He’s the MVP. He’s the best player in the NBA. He showed it the last three games. … He was special tonight. I have to give him his flowers. He was that guy.” pic.twitter.com/C0x3kylQS2
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) May 15, 2024
“He was special tonight,” the former first overall pick finishes. “I got to give him his flowers. I mean, I don’t know what we were supposed to do. He was that guy tonight.”
Ant-Man’s Disappearing Act
Edwards had an uncharacteristically poor showing in Game 5, scoring 18 points, shooting 5-15 from the floor and 1-5 from 3. Half of those points came in the third quarter, but Jokic’s otherworldly play demoralized him and the Timberwolves. Edwards only attempted three shots in the fourth quarter despite playing all 12 minutes and knowing a loss would put them on the brink of elimination.
The 22-year-old looked his age for the first time this postseason.
