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DENVER – With bags on his back, Nikola Jokic playfully made his way through the crowd of family and friends gathered at the airport terminal.
The Denver Nuggets finally returned home after their longest-than-expected stay inside the NBA bubble.
Arriving with them, a new reputation: the team back.
The Nuggets overcame a pair of 3-1 series deficits by advancing to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2009. Their extended stint at Disney in Florida ended when LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers sent them packing after the Game. Five.
Still, they accomplished something historic by becoming the third major US professional sports team to rebound from a pair of 3-1 deficits in the same playoffs. They joined the 1985 Kansas City Royals and the 2003 Minnesota Wild.
“The people in this country, around the world, who were watching the playoffs, this group of guys, would be hard-pressed to find a better story to come out of this bubble,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone. “A group of young children faced elimination, they looked him in the face and kept surviving and moving forward … We have something special in the works.”
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The core features a variety of selected and developed players. There’s Murray, Kentucky’s seventh-pick pick in the 2016 draft who emerged as one of the bubble’s biggest stars.
There’s Jokic, the 7-foot center taken in the second round in 2014 who has the vision of a point guard and triple-double skills.
And there’s rookie Michael Porter Jr., a fast-shooting forward who fell to 14th in the draft two years ago because of his reluctant back.
“What encourages me the most is how young we are. What encourages me the most is the fact that we have written and built this team from an organic method,” said Malone. “We have young players who are growing and continue to amaze.”
No lead was safe with this cast. No set deficit was too overwhelming.
Denver rallied from a 3-1 deficit against Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz. As an encore, the team bounced back from a 3-1 deficit against Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers.
So when the Nuggets trailed 3-1 to the Lakers, they weren’t fired – until they were.
“We’re going to remember this all our lives,” Jokic said of the playoff race. “We had a really good group of guys. There was a lot of fighting in us.”
That’s even without one of its starters, Will Barton III, who didn’t play in the bubble due to a knee injury.
“I’m glad the other teams see us as a really good team,” said Murray, whose team beat San Antonio in Game 7 last season before losing to Portland in seven games. “They have to play hard. So it was good to see other teams give us that.”
DECISIONS DECISIONS
Mason Plumlee and Paul Millsap will be free agents, while Torrey Craig will be a restricted free agent. Jerami Grant, whose outside shot gave the Nuggets a big boost in the bubble, has a one-player option.
JOKIC AND MURRAY
Murray and Jokic rank 1-2 in Denver NBA history with the highest postseason scoring totals, according to NBA Stats. Murray finished the playoff run with 504 points, including a pair of 50-point performances against the Jazz.
Jokic finished with 464 points.
The previous top spot was held by Carmelo Anthony, who accumulated 435 points when the Nuggets reached the Western Conference finals in 2009 before being eliminated by the Lakers.
STUNNING GOALKEEPER
Porter, 21, showed his talent in the bubble. He had 37 points and 12 rebounds, the best of his career, in a win over Oklahoma City on Aug. 3. Two days later, he had 30 points and 15 rebounds, the best of his career, against San Antonio. No Nuggets rookie has scored more than 67 points in a two-game streak, according to the team.
Porter averaged 11.4 points and 6.7 rebounds in the playoffs.
Next step: improve defense.
“I always go back to when the playoffs started and asked him, ‘Do you want to be a great scorer or do you want to be a great player? If you want to be a great player, you have to buy the other end,'” Malone said. “He has shown that he wants and has shown that commitment.”
SIR. CLUTCH
Jokic had 30 points and 14 rebounds in Game 7 of the Utah series. It is the third time he has scored at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in Game 7. Only Tim Duncan and James have more with four each.
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