After a thrilling series matchup filled with twists and turns, the Denver Nuggets versus the Los Angeles Clippers came down to a Game 7 decider.
And it’s the Nuggets who emerged victorious to live for another day and continue that NBA championship hunt.
In a dominant fashion, the Nuggets completely shut down the Clippers’ NBA Playoff window, stamping a 120-101 win-or-go-home victory to enter the final four of the Western Conference bracket.
Demonstrating a collective attack, Denver overwhelmed LA with six players scoring 15+ points. Aaron Gordon led the charge with 22 points, and Christian Braun went off for 21.
As Nikola Jokic had a quiet offensive night, finishing with 16 points and 10 boards, it was Russell Westbrook who served as the man of the night for the Mile High City.
His off-the-bench performance of 16 points, five boards, five assists, and five steals served as the Nuggets’ X-factor to put the nail in the coffin of the Clippers’ season.
Winning the tough and grinding seven-game matchup, the Nuggets will immediately regroup as they’ll face the NBA-leading Oklahoma City Thunder for the second round, for which Shaquille O’Neal already had a bold prediction.
The Clippers marvellously battled against the Nuggets all series long, and it’s undoubtedly disappointing that they couldn’t sustain it for the most important game.
Out of this brutal Game 7 collapse, James Harden now finds himself the primary subject of scrutiny, not only with Clippers fans but also across the NBA world.
It appeared that the lights of Game 7 were way too bright for him to handle, as just when he was needed the most, he completely vanished.
After a stellar Game 6 display to keep their season alive, Harden laid an egg and failed to deliver for Los Angeles. Across 35 minutes, he finished with an awful 7-point output.
He might’ve dished plenty of good looks for his teammates with 12 assists, but Harden’s 2-8 shooting attempts stand as the lowest amongst the Clippers starters.
Left alone leading, Kawhi Leonard’s 22 points weren’t enough to single-handedly carry the Clippers.
As such, his statement speaks volumes when asked if he is significantly encouraged that he and Harden can continue what they managed to build this season.
“I don’t know right now,” Leonard said in his postgame interview. “I guess we’re still playing at a high level, in a sense. But that’s a hard question to answer right now.”
“I guess we just did a good job during the season. A lot of people counted us out, like you guys said, but we were able to get here,” Leonard added. “Still, just getting here is never the goal.”
To be fair, Harden served as the driving force of the Clippers’ statement season. If it wasn’t for him, LA might never have been able to prove their doubters wrong and reach this stage of the 2024-25 campaign.
As Leonard missed the initial portion of the season, it was Harden who guided the Clippers to maintain their contention status.
But as it is, it’s just disheartening to see how the Clippers’ promising year unfolded as Harden completely faded under pressure. When they had an opportunity to put themselves in front with the series tied 2-2 against Denver, the All-Star guard was a no-show as well in Game 5.
With Leonard finally healthy to play, many have thought that this might be it for the Clippers that they’ll be the No. 1 team in the NBA.
But with everything on the line, Harden couldn’t rise to the occasion, which just amplifies the brutal notion of Bill Simmons regarding his basketball legacy.
