On April 25, 2022, the Golden State Warriors challenged the Denver Nuggets on the road. In the first three games of the series, the Golden State Warriors won three straight games, leading the Nuggets 3-0. This game has also become a life-and-death battle for the Nuggets. Facing the warriors, who are strong in the playoffs, the Nuggets showed great resilience in today's game. In the end, the Nuggets defeated the Warriors 126-121 to pull back a city and avoid being swept out.
In the game, Jokic shot 14-of-21 and exploded with 38 points, 8 boards and 5 assists, Monte Morris shot 6-of-10 and scored 22 points and 5 assists, and Aaron Gordon shot 5-of-11 shooting for 21 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. The performance of the three of them laid the foundation for the Nuggets to win. But it was two other players who defeated the Warriors at the last critical moment, and the two players who shot the hardest shots in the game.
In this game, the Nuggets shot 55.6% from the field and shot 46.7% from three-point range, and it can be said that most of the players played very efficiently. But two players are very ironclad, one 5-of-1 and one 7-of-2. These two players are Rivers and Barton. Although they shot consecutive irons, they were also the big contributors to today's Nuggets victory.
With 33.5 seconds left in the fourth quarter, the Nuggets led by two points and the Warriors sent out-of-bounds balls. Warriors' Potter saw that Jokic was not on the court and wanted to hang the ball directly into the inside line, but it was recognized by Rivers and directly snatched it. Rivers' steal is really critical, and it is worth mentioning that Rivers contributed 5 steals in the whole game. After fending off the Warriors' offense, the Nuggets called a timeout. After the timeout, the Nuggets attacked, and Jokic drew the defense and passed the ball to Barton, who was on the bottom line. Barton received the ball and dropped his knife and hit a fatal three-pointer that helped the Nuggets seal the win. You know, before this ball, Barton shot 1 of 6 and 1 of 4 from three-point range, but he hit the most crucial goal and did not give the Warriors a chance to turn the tables.
The Nuggets' hard-won win can be said to be the result of a single heart, and their performance is very good. Although the Nuggets had a hard time completing the turnover, their performance in this game deserves the praise of fans. I hope they will continue to cheer on the next game and bring wonderful games to the fans.