Considering how well the Warriors played to get their second consecutive win in the first round of the National Basketball Association Playoffs, it’s significant to note that the most lasting moment of the outing wasn’t about anything they did. Rather, it was about what the Nuggets didn’t do. As decided underdogs in light of the talent gap, the sixth seeds should have at least stayed composed. Instead, rotation regulars Will Barton and DeMarcus Cousins gave way to baser instincts and got into a heated argument during a time out midway through the third quarter. Not exactly the best way to get back from a double-digit deficit that was once a double-digit advantage.
True, passion can serve as fuel for the fire. In the case of the Nuggets, however, it was mostly misplaced. They definitely could have done without reigning Most Valuable Player awardee Nikola Jokic’s lively entreaties with the referees that got him tossed from Game Two. To begin with, it’s not as if he doesn’t know whistles get looser and physical play becomes more prominent in the postseason. And in any case, he should know by now that the blue, yellow, and red are lost without him. It’s precisely why he’s touted to retain the Maurice Podoloff Trophy even in the face of the outstanding efforts of the Sixers’ Joel Embiid and the Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo. Didn’t he learn from his experience last year, when the Nuggets were swept off the court in his forced absence?
And so the Nuggets predictably lost. It wasn’t the first time they managed to snatch defeat from the throes of victory; their regular-season schedule is littered with setbacks that initially seemed to be triumphs. That said, they know well enough to compete, even in the absence of vital cogs Jamal Murray and Michael Porter, Jr. And what happened in Game Two can in no measure be construed as competing — a failing for which Jokic needs to take responsibility. He may be putting up good numbers, but if he’s not rallying the troops, he won’t be able to influence the outcome positively.
Nuggets head coach Michael Malone insists that they’ve put the incident behind them, and that they’ll do better at the Ball Arena. Perhaps he’s right given the expected support of the partisan crowd, never mind stats that show they’ve been middling at best as hosts. The bottom line is that they’re handicapped against the motivated Warriors, starring a reconstituted Death Lineup that precisely highlights their flaws. The bottom line is clear: Jokic needs to lead for them to have a chance. Else, they’ll all be unceremoniously shown the door anew.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.