Nikola Jokic got offended at Anthony Edwards seemingly waving the Nuggets home crowd goodbye after the Timberwolves won Game 7 on the road to eliminate the Nuggets from the Playoffs. Edwards clarified he pointed at the scoreboard, prompting the Serbian center to disengage and let the Wolves celebrate their win.
Nikola Jokic: “Why, why?”
Anthony Edwards: “Why what?”
Nikola Jokic: “Why did you wave at the crowd?”
*Edwards points to scoreboard* Jokic put up a masterful 34 points and 19 rebounds in the loss, but had a cold shooting game, going 0-7 from three-point range. Anthony Edwards struggled offensively and put up 16 points, but he showed up in the second half with vastly improved defense on Jamal Murray, though the Canadian guard finished with 35 points.
The Nuggets’ rotational strength disappeared in Game 7, as their two stars showed up to produce but everyone else combined for a total of 21 points. The Nuggets blew a 20-point lead in this game, the largest blown lead in Game 7 history.
The title favorites have seen their season end with a whimper, as this is the worst loss of Jokic’s career so far.
Nikola Jokic Thinks The Wolves Were Built To Beat The Nuggets
Nikola Jokic had a lot of praise for the Timberwolves after they clinched the series win, complimenting their roster and explaining why they were built to beat the Nuggets.
“Yes. I think they’re built to beat us. Just look at their roster, they have basically two All-Stars, two probably first defensive players (All-Defensive First Team) in the year, Mike Conley, who’s the most underrated player in the NBA probably… From the bench, they have a sixth player of the year, they have Kyle (Anderson), and (Nickeil Alexander-Walker) who was really good for them. They can do literally everything. They can be big,
small.” Jokic averaged 29.0 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 7.9 assists in the series, doing everything he could from his individual production to seal the win. But the tenacious Wolves defense made sure Jamal Murray was inconsistent over the series and restricted Michael Porter Jr. from having a single double-digit scoring game after Game 3 of the series.
The praise by Jokic was replicated by Chris Finch, but the quote everyone will remember from him is when he lost it at a reporter who asked him about the 20-point lead the Nuggets blew.
“Next question man. The season is over, that’s what’s hard. F**k being up 20. The season is over, you don’t understand that. The season is over, it’s hard. Stupid ass questions.”
The Nuggets were up 3-2 and capitulated in Games 6 and 7. Game 6 was a 45-point win for Minnesota, the largest of the 2024 Playoffs. Game 7 saw them blow the largest lead in Game 7 history. They can’t hide behind losing to a better team, as they had their opportunities to close the series out but failed to take them.
