Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets have stunned Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in an NBA epic, winning on the buzzer 130-126 to cap off an 18-point fourth-quarter comeback.
Golden State couldn’t miss late in the third quarter, making four-straight 3-pointers to open up a 107-94 lead over the Nuggets, who had been ahead 70-63 at halftime.
The Warriors picked up where they left off in the fourth as Andrew Wiggins made a 3-pointer to open the scoring and soon the game really started to get away from the Nuggets, who found themselves trailing 121-103 with 7:24 on the clock.
It prompted Nuggets coach Michael Malone to call a timeout and he got the desired result as Jokic and Jamal Murray made two quick buckets in between a Wiggins jumpshot.
Denver then went on a 13-0 run to draw within five points of the Warriors with just over three minutes left.
A Trayce Jackson-Davis layup later put Golden State ahead 127-120 with 2:05 on the clock before Peyton Watson drained a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession for Denver to keep things interesting.
Things got even more interesting as Aaron Gordon and Jokic scored to tie up the game with 26 seconds left.
It gave the Warriors a perfect chance to chew up the majority of the remaining time on the clock before going for the go-ahead score, except instead Curry turned the ball over with 4.1 seconds left.
Malone immediately called a timeout to advance the ball and that is when Jokic, who scored 34 points in the win, came up clutch with a stunning 3-pointer on the buzzer.
“Are you kidding me? Are you kidding me? A 7-footer off the dribble?” Stan Van Gundy said in commentary.
JOKIC CALLS GAME FROM NEAR HALF-COURT 🤯🤯
WILD ENDING.
pic.twitter.com/JGI5PtmeVm— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 5, 2024
Jokic also had 10 assists, nine rebounds, two steals and a block in the win while Jamal Murray and Gordon combined for 55 points. Watson had 19 points off the bench.
As for Golden State, Curry led the way with 30 points while Klay Thompson had 24 and Jonathan Kuminga added a handy 16.
Kuminga though only played 19 minutes, with Kerr opting against closing the game out with him, something which the Golden State coach explained had more to do with not wanting to take out Wiggins.
“He was playing great,” Kerr said of Wiggins.
“His [Kuminga] normal time to go back in would have been around the 5-6 minute mark and Wiggs was playing great and we were rolling, we’re up 18, 19 whatever it was.
“So we just stayed with [Wiggins]. Then at that point, it didn’t feel like it was the right thing to do. He’d been sitting for a while, so I stayed with the group that was out there. Obviously we couldn’t close it out.”
Here’s Steve Kerr on the decision not to go back to Jonathan Kuminga for the final 18 minutes tonight. pic.twitter.com/8ydWqtgS3X
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) January 5, 2024
GIANNIS, WEMBY DUEL IT OUT IN THRILLER
The Milwaukee Bucks, led by Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 44 points and 14 rebounds, held off the San Antonio Spurs 125-121 despite another stellar performance from Victor Wembanyama on his 20th birthday.
Wembanyama, restricted to 26 minutes on the floor as he recovers from ankle trouble, scored 27 points with nine rebounds and five blocked shots.
Devin Vassell led the Spurs with 34 points, but the highlight-reel battle between Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama stole the show in San Antonio.
It was the French rookie’s first meeting with the Greek superstar after Wembanyama’s sprained ankle forced him to miss a December game in Milwaukee.
Wemby cooks the freak in star showdown | 00:28
Giannis spins to the cup for the HAMMER 🔥
Wemby responds with the lob to himself! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Yo8pbPL1ka
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) January 5, 2024
“He’s unbelievable, unbelievable talent,” Antetokounmpo said of Wembanyama, who thrilled San Antonio fans in the first half by jamming home a dunk off his own bounce off the backboard.
“He can score at will, anytime he wants. Plays the right way, plays to win. It was good playing against him,” added Antetokounmpo after the Bucks snapped a two-game skid to improve to 25-10, the third best record in the league.
The entertaining contest was tied 93-93 heading into a fourth quarter that featured eight lead changes, the Spurs battling for the upset in a season that has seen them win just five games.
For Wembanyama it was also a chance to test himself against a player he “grew up watching” in Antetokounmpo — a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player who led the Bucks to the NBA title in 2021.
“It’s always extra motivation,” Wembanyama said.
“I want to go at everyone and be the bad guy on the court. So it was a great match-up.”
Antetokounmpo drained a three-pointer to tie it up at 118-118 with three minutes to play. He then drew a charge call on Wembanyama and less than a minute later drilled another three-pointer to put the Bucks up 121-118.
Wembanyama answered with a big block of a Damian Lillard layup and a three-pointer that tied it with 1:09 remaining.
A dunk from Antetokounmpo put the Bucks back in front, but Wembanyama blocked another shot from a driving Antetokounmpo to keep the Spurs within reach.
A heavily guarded Wembanyama found open teammate Tre Jones for a potential game-tying three-pointer with just over a second to play, but Jones’s shot didn’t fall.
“Of course the outcome isn’t what we wanted, but it was the widest open shot,” Wembanyama said, adding that the Spurs’ overall performance was encouraging.
“Just the fact that we can compete with a championship level team like this is promising,” he said.
Giannis Antetokunmpo, aka "The Greek Freak," on Victor Wembanyama: "I've never seen anything like him."
— Jeff McDonald (@JMcDonald_SAEN) January 5, 2024
Supercut of the highlights in the final 90 seconds between Wemby and Giannis/King of the Monsters.
Bucks win 125-121. Tremendous content. pic.twitter.com/MZbVRSrWdI
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) January 5, 2024
Dude…Wemby vs. Giannis is INCREDIBLE
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) January 5, 2024
