When Nikola Jokic takes his fifth foul in the final quarter, there are still more than nine minutes to play and Denver leads by 10 points. So now is a dangerous time for the Nuggets. But when the Serb returns, five minutes later, the Nuggets still have a 9-point lead. They thus perfectly managed these minutes without their best player, relying on the duo Jamal Murray – Aaron Gordon.
But it’s not the Serb who will definitely kill the Heat. Precious as ever in Colorado, Bruce Brown will be decisive with 11 points in this last quarter. Specifically in the last five minutes.
“I just tried to be aggressive”he comments at a press conference. “We knew they were going to double up on Murray, to force him to let go of the ball, so the other four players were going to have to make the difference. Luckily, it was my turn in that quarter. It’s not that often, but we’ve already played without Jokic. I knew you had to be aggressive, go to the circle. »
And Bruce Brown turned into a scorer…
During this sequence, Bruce Brown will squarely turn into a “go-to-guy” for Denver. An easy basket on the counter-attack, then another one-handed with the fault of the free throw line, before a “Jordanesque” lay-up against Bam Adebayo, and finally an award-winning shot on the head of Duncan Robinson, after insulation!
“Did I imagine he would score 11 points in the last quarter of Game 4 of the Finals away? Not really “replies Mike Malone when asked if he had thought of giving as much responsibility to the back, when he signed him in Denver. “But I imagined him carrying the ball, making the game. I watched him coaching against him, or in the playoffs last season against Boston and I saw his impact on Tatum and Jaylen Brown. The thing with him is that he is not afraid. He was incredible in this quarter. They were so focused on Jamal that they let Bruce play. It was an impressive performance. »
The former Brooklyn player ends this meeting with 21 points. If he has already scored more points in a playoff game, this season or with the Nets last year, he has probably never displayed such a level at this altitude. For five minutes in that money time, he was the boss of the game for the Nuggets.
“It’s great, it shows the work I do every off-season,” he explains. “When I came to the league, I didn’t know how to shoot. I was limited. I didn’t trust my outside shot and I was left on my own. It affected my confidence, but it also motivated me. I went to the room, I worked and now I show it at the highest level. »
In a press conference, Erik Spoelstra has also repeatedly noted the (demoralizing) impact of Bruce Brown.
“Every time we felt like we were getting down to 6 or 8 points, they were able to get it down to 12 points. That was definitely the frustrating part of the game.” details the Florida coach. “And Brown played a big part in that game, with his random cuts and his actions in the middle of the key, when it was expected that it would be Murray or someone else who would take care of it. . »
| Bruce Brown, Jr. | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Crew | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2018-19 | TED | 74 | 20 | 39.8 | 25.8 | 75.0 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 1.2 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 4.3 |
| 2019-20 | TED | 58 | 28 | 44.3 | 34.4 | 73.9 | 1.1 | 3.7 | 4.7 | 4.0 | 2.8 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 8.9 |
| 2020-21 | BRK | 65 | 22 | 55.6 | 28.8 | 73.5 | 1.7 | 3.7 | 5.4 | 1.6 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 8.8 |
| 2021-22 | BRK | 72 | 25 | 50.6 | 40.4 | 75.8 | 1.4 | 3.4 | 4.8 | 2.1 | 2.4 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 9.0 |
| 2022-23 | DEN | 80 | 29 | 48.3 | 35.8 | 75.8 | 0.8 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 2.4 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 11.5 |
| Total | 349 | 25 | 48.2 | 34.1 | 74.9 | 1.1 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 2.4 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 8.5 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Shots made / Shots attempted; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def= defensive rebound; Tot = Total bounces; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost bullets; Ct: Counters; Points = Points.
