When Curry returns, the Warriors can return to championship mode? The truth is not so simple. The Denver Nuggets will play against the Golden State Warriors in the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs, potentially the most glued showdown in the first round in the West. The Nuggets are one of the most problematic teams this season, especially Murray and Porter Jr. can not return, but Jokic single-core led the team out of the predicament, and in the face of the playoffs Curry only returned to the Warriors showdown, the Nuggets with Jokic are undoubtedly more optimistic, the US media is also from two aspects of the analysis, that the Nuggets are expected to eliminate the Warriors on the following gram to advance.
The Nuggets have jokic, the league's best player at the moment
There's an old saying in basketball that when you have the best players on the court, you always have a chance to win. Despite the respect Curry deserves, the Nuggets have Jokic, who is the best player on the court today. The Serbian centre-forward, who won the MVP last season and continues to be the number one favourite for MVP this season, is playing one of his greatest seasons.
Not only did Jokic become the first player in history to have 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists in a single season, Jokic also set the highest PER record since that statistic. Purely from the statistics, Jokic can average 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game this season.
Jokic's 7.9 assists is still an elite statistic, but it could be even higher if he has teammates with more offensive talent. The Nuggets' second-place scorer is Gordon, who has averaged around 15 points per game this year. That makes the Nuggets one of only four teams in the playoffs that don't have two teams averaging more than 20 points per game, tied with the Jazz, Lone Rangers and Grizzlies. That's an important statistic simply because it shows Jokic having to climb higher mountains in order for the Nuggets to have a place in the playoffs, especially since the Jazz and Grizzlies have multiple offensive weapons and play at a fairly high level.
In terms of his influence on the game, Jokic's greatest strength is his versatility. On the defensive end, Jokic could have problems, especially when it comes to blocking, and the Warriors do a lot of things with Curry. However, the NBA defends best on the offensive end, and whether it can contain the Nuggets' superstars like the Warriors is questionable. Jokic can go to the outside and shoot from a distance, whether it's a two-point or three-point shooter, and he can also force it on the inside, and simply put, Jokic can do so much that the Warriors can't effectively stop him because he can always find a way to influence the game on the offensive end.
Curry and the Warriors struggled in the second half
Entering this playoff series, the two teams are in different positions. The Warriors have stumbled a bit, with their form fluctuating since the All-Star Game. Curry also struggled a bit because he was far from the MVP level at the start of the season. Jokic has had 35+ points and 10+ rebounds in six of the last seven games, and the Nuggets are clearly entering the series in a better form.
What happened to the Warriors was actually quite bizarre, and in grand schemes, they had an amazing season start and end. The Warriors started with an 18-2 record and ended the year with a five-game winning streak. In the middle, the Warriors have some problems. The Nuggets have beaten the Warriors in their last two meetings, even though the scores in both games are fairly close.
Curry's form after his comeback is unknown, and Curry has seen a huge decline in the middle of the season. Injury problems and the fact that he has not performed well for most of the season may be one reason why the Nuggets are hopeful in this series. Once Curry can't get back to his peak level, the Warriors will have a hard time beating the Nuggets, and it is likely that the Denver team will complete the next gram promotion.
(Text/Drunken Floating Life)