Denver Nuggets - The Next Level [Game 3 + 4]

[Mavs4Life]

You should try to horde all the remaining real-life players next season.

I agree. It took me till 2028 for Tyreke Evans to finally retire & have it be all created players.

[Kenny]

Bulls and Knicks renew their rivalry.

Last year's series certainly had plenty of drama but with your current momentum, I'm guessing you'll have an easier time...maybe five games, six tops and taking control of the series early.

Thought you might have liked that... I probably should have mentioned it in the notes as well.

It'd be nice to take this series a little quicker this time, but we'll see what happens. Houston is a really tough team in my dynasty (much like real life too, except they have a bit more luck).

Bulls/Knicks . Nuggets in 6.

I'm hoping to get it done a little quicker than that, but I'd say it'd be a pretty close prediction.

Rockets in 4 this time. Good to see the Rockets have a deep squad, just like IRL.

The Rockets are probably the one team in this dynasty I think could take me in 4 (hope that comment doesn't come back to bite me). They have a lot of depth... I mean, Joe Alexander as well!

Luvin' the Clips & Lakers are meeting in 2nd Round of playoffs. Only in a game could this happen

Yes, I'm aware it almost happened IRL about 5 years ago but it still didn't happen.

Since the Clippers are probably my second or third favourite team (they're in competition with the Spurs), I'd love this series to happen at some point. Particularly if they were the 8th seed and they beat Kobe

One can dream...

And well done for spotting a glitch in my playoff chart (SMH). Surprised I didn't get called out on that earlier actually

Did I spot a glitch? I don't know why I said Mavericks actually, it's Timberwolves

I had the Mavs logo on the chart instead of the Wolves, so yes, you did. The strange thing is, those two teams have always been two I mix up for some reason. It's silly really when you consider that they couldn't be further apart after last season's result.

Sweep the Rockets!

I shall do my best.

You should try to horde all the remaining real-life players next season.

I agree. It took me till 2028 for Tyreke Evans to finally retire & have it be all created players.

Pretty sure hording real life players is what I've been doing this entire dynasty but I shall try and do it some more. On the subject of Tyreke Evans, he played in the league for 4 seasons and he wasn't picked up from free agency after his rookie contract. If I ever end up signing him, I'll have to make up some hard luck story.

Touche... I couldn't find his picture on ESPN though. That's my usual source, but I'll have to check hoopshype as well next time.

[Kenny]

Denver Vs Houston: The First 4 Games

Game 1: Alan Sinks Winner; Houston Lead 1-0



It took a long two from Brice Alan to seperate the Rockets and the Nuggets in game 1, with Houston winning 81-79. After J.R. Smith appeared to step out of bounds on the previous play, the Rockets had under two seconds to come up with the play. Here's how it unfolded:

phpBB [video]

It was only his 6th point of the night, but he played the role of distributor for the majority of the game with 12 assists. The Rockets were led by Carl Ellis (22) and Armando Ferrer (20 points, 11 rebounds), who were both dominant on the offensive end. Dennis Schmitz scored 12 and was the last of Houston's double-digit scorers.

For the Denver Nuggets, Borislav Perko completed his first triple-double of the off-season. Despite being in the losing side, he had an incredible game with 17 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists. The high scorers for Denver were Taylor MacKenzie (20) and J.R. Smith (18), while Kevin Durant's innocuous post-season continued with 12 points.

For the second year in a row, the Nuggets have given up the first game to the Houston Rockets.

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HOU@DEN

HOU: 81 (Ellis 22, Ferrer 20, Schmitz 12)
DEN: 79 (MacKenzie 20, Smith 18, Perko 17)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Armando Ferrer 20 points 11 rebounds 3 assists 4 blocks

Rebounds

HOU: Ferrer 11
DEN: Perko 15

Assists

HOU: Alan 12
DEN: Perko 11

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Game 2: Denver Even The Series



After losing the first one in the dying seconds, the Nuggets left nothing to chance as they beat the Rockets 74-66 in game 2. J.R. Smith and Taylor MacKenzie were both productive on the offensive end with 17 and 16 respectively, but the MVP was once again Borislav Perko. After coming so close in 4 games against Utah, Perko picked up his second consecutive triple-double with 15 points, 13 rebounds and 16 assists. If Denver pick up another title, one tough decision will have to be made on who is the MVP.

Armando Ferrer had another strong outing for the Rockets with 19 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists. After previously averaging 25 points per game in the 2020 playoffs, Liam Koch had another relatively lack-luster game with 14, while Carl Ellis (13) and Brice Alan (12) were limited in their contributions.

The series is now tied at 1-1.

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HOU@DEN

DEN: 74 (Smith 17, MacKenzie 16, Perko 15)
HOU: 66 (Ferrer 19, Koch 14, Ellis 13)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Borislav Perko 15 points 13 rebounds 16 assists

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 13
HOU: Ferrer 8

Assists

DEN: Perko 16
HOU: Alan 8

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Game 3: Nuggets Return The Favour In Houston



After being defeated in their first home game of the series, the Denver Nuggets handed the Rockets a dose of their own medicine with a 78-70 win in game 3. In a low scoring game, the Denver players once again had a relatively even share of the scoring. This time Kevin Durant led them with 15, while both J.R. Smith and Taylor MacKenzie scored 14. Borislav Perko fell short of his 3rd consecutive triple-double by 1 rebound with 12 points, 9 rebounds and 12 assists.

It was the same old story for the Rockets as Armando Ferrer provided their shining light of the game with 22. Carl Ellis and Liam Koch were both below par with 11 points each, while 6-man Nathan Bing scored 10.

Denver were down 3-0 after this corresponding game last season, but luckily for them, history wasn't repeated.

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DEN@HOU

DEN: 78 (Durant 15, MacKenzie 14, Smith 14)
HOU: 70 (Ferrer 22, Ellis 11, Koch 11)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Borislav Perko 12 points 9 rebounds 12 assists 1 block 1 steal

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 9
HOU: Schmitz 8

Assists

DEN: Perko 12
HOU: Watters 3

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Game 4: T-Mac Haunts Clutch City; Denver 1 Away From WCF



Denver went up 3-1 after an exciting 91-89 win over the Rockets in Houston. J.R. Smith top scored for the visitors with 27 points, but it was Taylor MacKenzie who landed the decisive blow in the dying stages of the game. It wouldn't be the first time a guy with the nickname of T-Mac came up big in Houston, but this time, he's on the other side. Here's how the play unfolded:

phpBB [video]

MacKenzie ended up with 20 points after that game winner. Once again it was "close but no cigar" for Borislav Perko, as he had 12 points, 9 rebounds and 11 assists. Kevin Durant scored 11 to be the last of Denver's double-digit scorers.

It seems that Armando Ferrer's big performances are going unrewarded, this time picking up the Sprite Performer of the Game with 32 points and 11 rebounds as he dominated the game. Liam Koch finally stepped up to the plate as well, scoring 26. After a big first game, Carl Ellis had another mediocre game by his standards with 10 points, while Brice Alan racked up his assist tally to 15 and completed his double-double with 10 points.

The Nuggets now have a decisive 3-1 lead in the series heading to Denver in Game 5. Is it going to be a mere formality? Or will the Rockets stay in the series?

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DEN@HOU

DEN: 91 (Smith 27, MacKenzie 20, Perko 12)
HOU: 89 (Ferrer 32, Koch 26, Alan 10)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Armando Ferrer 32 points 11 rebounds 2 assists 1 block

Rebounds

DEN: Perko 9
HOU: Ferrer 11

Assists

DEN: Perko 11
HOU: Alan 15

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With a game 5 in Denver, is there anyone willing to bet against them at this point? Will they head through and face the Battle of Los Angeles winner? Or will the Rockets have the heart to take them to a 7th once again? All the answers will be up soon.

[Martti.]

Perko can average a triple-double! Make it happen!

[Cruzerr]

Im more impressed of Perko then your wins(which were still awesome). Seems my prediction might be pretty accurate, except the team Good luck

[Warlock95]

Hey! Who's that guy on the Rockets bench wearing #34? That's blasphemy!

[The X]

Nice to see Rockets testing you but you'll still prevail

Hey! Who's that guy on the Rockets bench wearing #34? That's blasphemy!

I think Axel. said the same thing last time

The guy next to him is ready to play volleyball & you've got Justin Timberlake on the bench too

[Axel The Great]

Yep, that's one thing that disappoints about some games, same story as that one player who has #23 in Chicago. The guy has #34, why bench him? Maybe he has a bit of "The Dream" in him.

Despite being up 3-1, I'm glad to see the Rockets have given you a challenge. With such a deep squad, there's always Armando Ferrer ( ) and two other players bringing up the scoring. Pretty clutch series so far, with two game-winners. T-Mac's seemed like a lucky shot, though, did he call bank on that? I'd like to see it go to seven games to be able to call it one of the best playoff series of all time.

[Mavs4Life]

This has been a great series. I know NBC would have an epic intro for game 5.

[Andrew]

Great series so far with the two game winners, I bet you were holding your breath as T-Mac's shot rattled about before dropping in.

[Kenny]

Perko can average a triple-double! Make it happen!

Up to this point he's averaging 12.1ppg, 10.6rpg and 10.6apg... so it's happening, let's just hope I can keep it up

Im more impressed of Perko then your wins(which were still awesome). Seems my prediction might be pretty accurate, except the team Good luck

I'm constantly surprised with how effective he's being with the team. It makes me want to play all of next season to try and achieve what only Oscar Robertson has so far (a triple-double average over a season).

Prediction is looking good at the moment... I'll just ignore the Timberwolves part of it

Hey! Who's that guy on the Rockets bench wearing #34? That's blasphemy!

I think Axel. said the same thing last time

The guy next to him is ready to play volleyball & you've got Justin Timberlake on the bench too

Yep, that's one thing that disappoints about some games, same story as that one player who has #23 in Chicago. The guy has #34, why bench him? Maybe he has a bit of "The Dream" in him.

Yeah, Axel. shared the outrage in the last playoffs and to answer your question, that's Nathan Bing. He won the Most Improved Player in 2019 and he's the Rockets 6-man. He's a pretty awesome player, but he's no Hakeem (he was other-worldly)

T-Mac 2.0 showed his contempt for the blasphemer, volleyball and JT by nailing the gamewinner in front of them

Nice to see Rockets testing you but you'll still prevail

Whether I win or lose, Houston always put up a fight. Previous two series' I've played against them in this dynasty, both have gone to 7 games.

Despite being up 3-1, I'm glad to see the Rockets have given you a challenge. With such a deep squad, there's always Armando Ferrer ( ) and two other players bringing up the scoring. Pretty clutch series so far, with two game-winners. T-Mac's seemed like a lucky shot, though, did he call bank on that? I'd like to see it go to seven games to be able to call it one of the best playoff series of all time.

I love playing Houston in the playoffs. Ferrer is such a dominant presense that I have to pretty much construct a new gameplan around him. Perko can't go around him and if he takes the fadeaway jumper, Ferrer will block it 9/10 times.

T-Mac probably did call bank because he banks more than Tim Duncan. He just about relies on that backboard with those mid-range jumpers, but it's something I really like about him and I can relate to it (although my shots are more likely to go over the backboard... you can probably get that confirmed by Sit or the X ).

I'm so glad I'm still able to have great series' like this. Definitely keeps the game exciting.

This has been a great series. I know NBC would have an epic intro for game 5.

Only at this time of the game I wish Mark Jackson was a commentator, so he could spout of lame lines like "Hey Mama, there goes that man". Any other day of the week, I'd take Steve Kerr and Marv Albert though

Great series so far with the two game winners, I bet you were holding your breath as T-Mac's shot rattled about before dropping in.

The rattling shot did add to the suspense, definitely. I'm sure down the line it'll shape up as one of my favourite playoff moments of this dynasty.

[Kenny]

Denver Vs Houston: The Conclusion

Game 5: Houston Take Away Game



The Houston Rockets forced a game 6 with a narrow 73-71 victory over the Denver Nuggets in game 5. Armando Ferrer hit what would be the game winning layup and he also contributed 13 points, 11 rebounds and 8 assists. With the last possession of the game, Taylor MacKenzie was unable to repeat his Game 4 heroics as he missed the shot. The Rockets had 3 other double-digit scorers along with Armando Ferrer, led by Brice Alan with 16. Liam Koch (14) and Carl Ellis (11) were the other two.

This was a game where the numbers were dominated by the power forwards. Ferrer led his team in rebounds and assists and Borislav Perko followed suit. Perko had his third triple-double of the series with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists. On the offensive end, Taylor MacKenzie (21), Kevin Durant (14) and J.R. Smith (14) all fed off his elite ball distribution. However the Nuggets were once again beaten in the final moments.

This series is set to head to Houston for Game 6.

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HOU@DEN

HOU: 73 (Alan 16, Koch 14, Ferrer 13)
DEN: 71 (MacKenzie 21, Durant 14, Smith 14)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Borislav Perko 12 points 10 rebounds 16 assists 2 steals

Rebounds

HOU: Ferrer 11
DEN: Perko 10

Assists

HOU: Ferrer 8
DEN: Perko 16

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Game 6: T-Mac Takes it From Houston



Denver capped off an incredibly hard fought series with a 69-67 win against Houston in Game 6. Brandon Jennings exploded with an MVP effort of 30 points, but the truly memorable moment once again belongs to Taylor MacKenzie. With the game tied at 67 and the possibility of taking the series, here's how the play unfolded:

phpBB [video]

MacKenzie was the second highest scorer for Denver with 14 points, but will be remembered as the guy that grounded the Rockets. Borislav Perko had a rather non-eventful game in the stat-line, but he still managed 11 points and 5 assists. After cooling off considerably in this series, J.R. Smith struggled with 10 points, but he was carried by Jennings and MacKenzie.

Liam Koch finished Houston's last game as their top scorer with 21, while Carl Ellis had 15. The Rockets MVP Armando Ferrer had a relatively quiet game on offense with 12 points, but his work on the boards was outstanding once again. Not only did he grab 12 for himself, but he kept perenial triple-double threat Borislav Perko to just 3 for the entire game.

Denver advance to the Western Conference Finals where they'll meet a team from Los Angeles.

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DEN@HOU

DEN: 69 (Jennings 30, MacKenzie 14, Perko 11)
HOU: 67 (Koch 21, Ellis 15, Ferrer 12)

Sprite Performer of the Game: Brandon Jennings 30 points 1 rebound 6 assists 2 steals

Rebounds

DEN: Jordan, Smith 6
HOU: Ferrer 12

Assists

DEN: Jennings 6
HOU: Alan 7

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For me that series truly lived up to expectation. With 4 games being decided by 2 points, it really could have gone either way. Thought I'd dedicate that game 6 to Martti; I know you asked for 40, but 30 is still a pretty good effort and it was in the deciding game. If it wasn't for Taylor MacKenzie, I could have called it Jennings' game

Who will prevail in the Battle of Los Angeles and take on the champs? Results from the other matchups will be up soon.

[The X]

Wtf?!? What a ridiculous shot by T-Mac

Why didn't you shoot with Jennings? He was wide, wide open. Meanwhile T-Mac was guarded & hit a bank shot at a ridiculous angle.

Great, great series. Houston has to be gutted, they had a great shot at beating you & as you said, the series could have easily gone the other way. I feel a bit sorry for Rockets but hope they come back next year & continue battling hard

One question, why were games so low scoring? I recall you play 7 minute quarters but your scores are never that low. Did Houston make you grind it out?

[kibaxx7]

I'd have shot with Brandon there. But you made it, nothing to complain

[Cruzerr]

Agreed with Theirry, nice win

[Axel The Great]

Two final games that were defensive grinds. I love those kinds of games. Had it not been for Jennings' amazing game, I'm sure the Rockets could've forced a game 7. Either way, I'm happy knowing the Rockets put up a fight and didn't go down like the Jazz.

[Martti.]

Yes! 30 points in the clincher is huge! Thanks.

[Kenny]

Wtf?!? What a ridiculous shot by T-Mac

Why didn't you shoot with Jennings? He was wide, wide open. Meanwhile T-Mac was guarded & hit a bank shot at a ridiculous angle.

Great, great series. Houston has to be gutted, they had a great shot at beating you & as you said, the series could have easily gone the other way. I feel a bit sorry for Rockets but hope they come back next year & continue battling hard

One question, why were games so low scoring? I recall you play 7 minute quarters but your scores are never that low. Did Houston make you grind it out?

It's going to sound silly, but when it comes to the end of the game, I'd probably rely on a contested, fade-away shot from T-Mac than an open one from Jennings (at this point of the dynasty anyway). He's one of those guys who defies all logic and hits more shots off balance than he does in rhythm. I'd actually compare his fade to Dirk, because it seems like nobody can block it and when he's hitting it, he's unguardable.

If the Rockets keep their core, I think they'll remain to be a tough playoff team. Armando Ferrer's presense makes it hard to get to the hoop and if I'm not mistaken, Carl Ellis is a former All-Defensive player, so they're just really hard to score against. Plus I think against them I was slowing the tempo down a little. All of that combined is why it was a low scoring series.

I'd have shot with Brandon there. But you made it, nothing to complain

Agreed with Theirry, nice win

Brandon definitely had a hot game, but I'm often reluctant to shoot it with him in the clutch moments. He's made some great shots in the past, but he's also been blocked quite a few times too, so there's always an element of hesitation.

Two final games that were defensive grinds. I love those kinds of games. Had it not been for Jennings' amazing game, I'm sure the Rockets could've forced a game 7. Either way, I'm happy knowing the Rockets put up a fight and didn't go down like the Jazz.

With the two shots that T-Mac won those games with, the Rockets were very unlucky. They always put up a great fight... Armando Ferrer is a beast... one of my favourite non-Denver players

Yes! 30 points in the clincher is huge! Thanks.

No worries, he nailed a few threes at the start and I knew it was going to be his night

[Kenny]

NBA Playoffs: Conference Semi Finals Results

EAST

(1) Chicago 4 - 1 New York (4)
(6) Toronto 4 - 1 Atlanta (7)

Notes
- Toronto have followed up their impressive upset over Washington, dropping only one game to Atlanta. Currently they have a record of 8 wins and 2 losses; the same record as Denver.
- Chicago stayed the course, but they face a team that took out the reigning Eastern Conference champions. It's sure to be one hell of a series.

WEST

(1) Denver 4 - 2 Houston (4)
(2) LA Clippers 4 - 2 LA Lakers (3)

Notes
- The Clippers took the Battle of Los Angeles... how things have changed in 10 seasons.
- The MVP winner (J.R. Smith) will face the MVP favourite (Ollie Rose) in this season's Western Conference Finals series.

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Preview for the WCF will be up next.

[Kenny]

NBA Playoffs 2020: Western Conference Finals
Denver Vs LA Clippers

J.R. Smith and Ollie Rose went toe-to-toe in both the scoring title and the MVP stakes this season. Rose took out the scoring title, but an unbelievably efficient season saw Earl win the MVP trophy. In the previous ten seasons, only one player took out the Larry O'Brien trophy after winning the regular season MVP... who was it? It was J.R. Smith. So if anyone can beat the curse, it's him.

With all that rivalry though, this series will be about more than two players. The Clippers will be looking to silence the critics about their own curse, while the Nuggets will be aiming to extend their legacy of dominance. Both teams want this, but it'll end up coming down to game time execution. Will the Clippers finally break through and get to the NBA Finals? Or will the Nuggets make it for the 4th straight year?

The Teams

Denver Nuggets

The Starters


| DeAndre Jordan | Borislav Perko | Kevin Durant | J.R. Smith | Brandon Jennings

The Bench


| Taylor MacKenzie | Robin Lopez | Pat Mills | Adrian Young | Ed Reed | Aaron Watters | Rudy Fernandez |

IR


| George Power | Crispin Erwin | Dennis Da Conceicao |

LA Clippers

The Starters


| Tim Cox | Ricardo Carlos | PJ Davies | Ollie Rose | Philipp Wagner |

The Bench


| James Harden | Sean Williams | Reuben Glanville | Lance Travis | Drew Boctor | Kazandu Chidzero | Marcus Feehan |

IR


| Cy Scott | Thomas Scott | Whitman Ellison |

Keys

Denver

It's hard to believe that the J.R. Smith/Ollie Rose matchup could possibly take a back seat, but when you have a guy that averages a triple-double, suddenly the series becomes about him. Borislav Perko is now seen as the MVP of the playoffs so far without scoring more than 17 in a game, but his distribution has been phenominal. Just about every play is running through him at the moment, which makes him key to this series. He has handled the pressure almost flawlessly so far and the Nuggets will be relying on his superb form to carry them through to the NBA Finals.

Houston

Ollie Rose... okay, the Clippers I going to need everyone to play well, but the bottom line is that Rose will need to carry this team. He has done so all this season, as he was the only All-Star selected on the team seeded 2nd in the Western Conference. He will need help from Ricardo Carlos and P.J. Davies, but there's no doubt that Rose will be running this show.

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The first 4 games will be up soon.

[Andrew]

Smith/Rose might be quite a shootout. Reckon a team effort is going to take down their lone star in the long run, though. Nuggets in five.

[Phil89]

Maybe if you combine all of your players facial hair you will be able to beat James Harden and the Clippers.

Seriously though, it looks like both top seeds are on a collision course to meet in the Finals.

[kibaxx7]

Bulls back in the Finals, like old times. Good luck man!

[Houndy]

Oh man, Ollie Rose is hungry for his first title.... Too bad he won't get it

[Axel The Great]

JR/Rose matchup will be one to watch. Even if you somehow manage to get Rose in foul trouble like I recommended earlier on, they still have Harden coming off the bench. Hoping for another Glanville flop, and Nuggets in 5.