With a triple-double each over 30 points, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray simply put on a legendary performance for a duo in Finals history. Just that.
As since the start of the playoffs, the pivot and the playmaker of Denver continue to dominate but, with 66 points, 31 rebounds and 20 assists, they have probably never been stronger than during these 48 minutes in Miami. .
“I’ve been with Jokic for eight years and Murray for seven, I’ve seen quite a few great performances, but never in the Finals”notes Mike Malone at a press conference. “With their performance, they made history like no one before. This is by far their best performance together. I always thought it was one of the best duos, one of the most lethal in the league. These two give headaches to a lot of people. »
And to Erik Spoelstra the first in this series, who can’t find the solution to counter them. The proof: the double MVP runs at 33.3 points and 9.3 assists on average at 59% shooting success, Murray at 26 points and 10 assists, at 50% shooting.
“It’s a great duo and their games complement each other”recognizes the Heat coach. “One of the two can score in a lot of positions and the other sets up excellent screens and serves very well. They set the tone in this game. They are part of the elite. »
A perfect knowledge of each other
The Nuggets made 42 screens for Jamal Murray according to NBA stats, of which 32 are signed Jokic, and this is their new season record. This duo is therefore not playing one after the other, but with each other, which makes it even more difficult to slow down.
“It’s a question of confidence, feelings, altruism and not really systems”, believes Murray to discuss his relationship with his teammate. “We read the game and we trust each other to make the right choice. When he serves me, he knows what to expect from me, he knows my attitude, my intensity. For my part, I know when he will pass or score. We play freely and we do not force anything. »
“They are like the Spurs of old”
As always when it comes to talking about him or records, Nikola Jokic was less talkative in analyzing his superb performance with Murray.
“There is common respect, a relationship over the years and communication,” comments the swivel. “I don’t know if it’s our best game together. We just wanted to win, we’ll talk about that later. It’s not just us, it’s the whole team. I said it before the series: Denver has to beat Miami, not just Jamal and me. »
For Kyle Lowry, Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic are the current Tim Duncan and Tony Parker. An analysis shared by Karl-Anthony Towns, present on the set ofESPN. ” They are like the Spurs of old. They keep pushing you back… The two have been playing together for a long time. That’s why there’s such chemistry between them. Every NBA champion has relied on stability, and that’s what allowed them to get to know each other on a level.”
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Nikola Jokic | 69 | 33.7 | 63.2 | 38.3 | 82.2 | 2.4 | 9.4 | 11.8 | 9.8 | 3.6 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 2.5 | 24.5 |
| Jamal Murray | 65 | 32.8 | 45.4 | 39.8 | 83.3 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 6.2 | 2.2 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 20.0 |
| Michael Porter, Jr. | 62 | 29.0 | 48.7 | 41.4 | 80.0 | 1.0 | 4.5 | 5.5 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 17.4 |
| Aaron Gordon | 68 | 30.2 | 56.4 | 34.7 | 60.8 | 2.4 | 4.1 | 6.6 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 16.3 |
| Bones Hyland | 42 | 19.5 | 39.9 | 37.8 | 86.6 | 0.2 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 1.6 | 12.1 |
| Bruce Brown, Jr. | 80 | 28.5 | 48.3 | 35.8 | 75.8 | 0.8 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 2.4 | 11.5 |
| Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | 76 | 31.3 | 46.2 | 42.3 | 82.4 | 0.5 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 2.4 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 10.8 |
| Reggie Jackson | 16 | 19.9 | 38.3 | 27.9 | 83.3 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.1 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 7.9 |
| Jeff Green | 56 | 19.5 | 48.8 | 28.8 | 74.4 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.8 | 7.8 |
| Zeke Nnaji | 53 | 13.7 | 56.1 | 26.2 | 64.5 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 5.2 |
| Deandre Jordan | 39 | 15.0 | 76.5 | 100.0 | 45.8 | 1.3 | 3.8 | 5.2 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 5.1 |
| Vlatko Cancar | 60 | 14.8 | 47.6 | 37.4 | 92.7 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 2.1 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 1.4 | 5.0 |
| Christian Brown | 76 | 15.5 | 49.5 | 35.4 | 62.5 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 1.3 | 4.7 |
| Thomas Bryant | 18 | 11.3 | 48.5 | 44.4 | 72.2 | 1.1 | 2.3 | 3.3 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 1.4 | 4.6 |
| peyton watson | 23 | 8.1 | 49.2 | 42.9 | 55.0 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 3.3 |
| Ish Smith | 43 | 9.3 | 39.7 | 16.7 | 50.0 | 0.1 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 2.5 |
| davon reed | 35 | 9.0 | 31.3 | 36.4 | 75.0 | 0.3 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 2.3 |
| Jack White | 17 | 3.9 | 42.1 | 33.3 | 66.7 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.2 |
