Jokic, Booker posting incredible stats
Nobody ever finished an NBA playoff game with at least 30 points, 17 rebounds and 17 assists.
That is, until Nikola Jokic did it on Friday.
Nobody ever finished an NBA playoff game with 53 points and 11 assists, either.
That is, until Nikola Jokic did it on Sunday.
And the Denver Nuggets went 0-2 in those games anyway, those stat lines — and some incredible numbers from Devin Booker, too — mostly overshadowed by Jokic getting into a bit of a thorny situation during Game 4 with a fan who just happened to be Mat Ishbia, the new owner of the Phoenix Suns.
The Suns-Nuggets Western Conference semifinal series is tied at 2-2, in large part because Booker cannot miss. He shot 20 for 25 in Game 3, 14 for 18 in Game 4 — the first player in NBA playoff history to shoot that well in back-to-back games while taking that many shots.
Booker leads the playoffs with a 36.8-point scoring average, and he’s on pace to be the first player to shoot 60% from the field, 50% from 3-point range and 85% from the foul line (while taking at least 50 field goal attempts) during a postseason.
Tonight, it’ll be Game 5 of Suns-Nuggets and Philadelphia-Boston — those series both tied at 2-2.
AWARD WINNERS
TNT will unveil the All-NBA Team on Wednesday night, and on Thursday at noon, the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year will be revealed.
Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid was announced as this season’s MVP, and here’s a list of the other major award-winners this season:
— Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr. won Defensive Player of the Year.
— De’Aaron Fox of Sacramento won the inaugural Clutch Player award.
— Sacramento’s Mike Brown became the first unanimous Coach of the Year.
— Boston’s Malcolm Brogdon won Sixth Man of the Year.
— Utah’s Lauri Markkanen was the easy winner of Most Improved Player.
— Orlando’s Paolo Banchero was a near-unanimous Rookie of the Year.
QUOTABLE
“I don’t usually get open shots, so this is a new thing with having KD’s gravity on the floor.” — Phoenix’s Devin Booker, on how he’s benefiting from having Kevin Durant with him on the Suns.