Last night, the Denver Nuggets tied their series against the Oklahoma City Thunder at three games apiece. Now, we get the two best words in all of basketball: Game 7. It’s been a hard-fought series, with the Nuggets taking Game 1 in OKC, only to give away home court advantage in Game 4. While both MVP candidates have had their ebbs and flows, Nikola Jokić and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will need to play great basketball to book a berth against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Conference Finals.
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A team is more than just one player, and no one embodies it more than the Thunder. On the other hand, the Nuggets’ supporting cast has had their moments, but lack consistency. Aaron Gordon, Russell Westbrook, and Christian Braun have all shown up, but one doesn’t know for certain when. Playing a Game 7 on the road, the Nuggets will need all their key pieces to contribute.
Gordon in particular has been vital. He has multiple clutch shots and a game winning, buzzer beating lob finish. However, Denver may be without him for Game 7. The power forward suffered a hamstring injury with about two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
Head coach David Adelman commented that “concern for Aaron is so high,” causing some worry for fans. Gordon himself insists he will play, however, anything less than 100% is still a meaningful difference.
Shannon Sharpe and Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson discussed the injury and the upcoming Game 7 on their podcast, Nightcap, with special guest Shawn Marion. They made their picks for Game 7. Ocho went first, picking the Thunder to win it. “I’m giving the edge to the Thunder because they gon be at home, so I got them.”
Sharpe was unable to pick a winner, but claimed he would have taken the Nuggets. “I told you it was concerning to me because I saw Aaron Gordon grabbing that hamstring,” started Sharpe, “They got their work cut out for them, if Gordon was 100% healthy and I didn’t see him grab that hamstring, I probably would’ve went with the Nuggets.”
“OKC is one of the loudest arenas I’ve ever played in,” said Marion. He believes the crowd would be off the charts, and believes the home team will prevail.
Both teams have had their fair share of other struggles. For OKC, Jalen Williams has been truly dreadful and has not been the second option he proved he could be in the regular season. The forward is shooting 33% from the field and 21% from deep. For Denver, Jamal Murray’s inconsistencies mean the Nuggets regularly need to wait out his cold stretches.
Either way, every Game 7 is a fun experience to get excited about. The Timberwolves are already waiting, having dispatched the Golden State Warriors in five games. Whoever wins the series will have next to no rest going into the next round, so they’ll need to walk a thin line between leaving it all on the court and keeping themselves healthy and ready for Minnesota.
