Nuggets survive Game 4 with gritty effort vs Warriors

Well played Denver, well played.

And there you have it folks, the first loss of the postseason for your Golden State Warriors. The Dubs failed to sweep the sixth seeded Denver Nuggets after falling 126-121 on the road in Game 4. This game provided some wonderful lessons for a new Warriors group trying to learn how to win when the stakes are highest.

Denver’s home crowd was in playoff form, willing their guys on by showering them with tremendous love and booing the hell out of the Warriors.

𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐫 𝐏𝐨𝐩𝐞 @exavierpope

Denver playing the “do it for the home crowd” game you see in 4-5 game series before bowing out quickly

The derision they rained on Golden State exacerbated the little annoying predicaments the Dubs found themselves in, like:

• Greatest shooter of all time Stephen Curry missing four free throws (two in a row at one point!).

  Warriors on NBCS @NBCSWarriors

  "This is just one of those freaky games." Mully isn't worried about Steph missing four free throw shots

  Anthony Slater @anthonyVslater

  Steph Curry on his career high four missed free throws: “I hate them. It’s the worst feeling in the world because it’s what I do really well.”

• Their veteran defensive anchors getting jammed up with foul trouble. Draymond Green fouled out, Klay Thompson had four by halftime and finished with five, and Andre Iguodala had five fouls in 13 minutes.

Kendra Andrews @kendra__andrews

Draymond gets called for the foul on Aaron Gordon. His night is done with the Warriors down by one and 2:05 left in the game.

Chris Montano @gswchris

this is a foul on klay, that is soft af

Warriors on NBCS @NBCSWarriors

"That's on me, I started off the game with two quick fouls, I gotta be smarter than that. Especially with my experience." Klay took ownership of his two early fouls that put him in foul trouble in Game 4

• The Warriors’ bench was a combined -51 plus/minus (yes that includes Curry who played 37 minutes as a reserve).

• There’s also that heavily criticized decision to run this lob play for Andrew Wiggins with the sweep on the line:

Half Court Hoops @HalfCourtHoops

"It's A Lob!" Breakdown: The Nuggets stop the Warriors' favorite play vs switching.

Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind

Asked Monte Morris if the Nuggets knew that Warriors lob to Andrew Wiggins was coming. Morris said it was a play the Nuggets scouted and prepared for. Golden State ran it successfully earlier this season vs. Indiana, but Denver was ready for it today.

Denver took advantage of Golden State’s mistakes and made them pay, lighting up GSW’s defense for 56% shooting from the field while nailing 15-of-31 of their attempts from beyond the arc. They pushed their lead as high as 17. Reigning MVP Nikola Jokic put on a masterclass in big man basketball, causing havoc for the Dubs with his scoring and passing.

x - Denver Nuggets @nuggets

And the mystery of how to stop Nikola Jokić continues... 🃏 37 Points 🃏 8 Rebounds 🃏 6 Assists 🃏 3-5 3P 🃏 14-21 FG 🃏 W

Jokic drew so much attention that the Warriors would get stuck in the mud on their rotations and leave a corner shooter enough of an open window to drill a triple.

x - Denver Nuggets @nuggets

The dime, the dagger, the win🙌

All that…and the Nuggets BARELY survived against these Warriors. I really thought the Dubs were going to pull this win out no matter how large the deficit ballooned because they kept clawing back with bloodthirsty intentions. Curry went nuclear in the fourth quarter for 15 of his 33 points. Thompson was a red-hot 7-of-11 from deep on his way to 32 points. This was damn near a vintage Splash Bro performance.

Golden State Warriors @warriors

Clutch.

Golden State Warriors @warriors

WARDELL STEPHEN CURRY II

Randy Dumalig @RanDumNBA

Klay Thompson’s coming off 2 YEARS of ACL/Achilles rehab and CLEARLY outplaying Ja/KD/Kyrie on national television

Draymond Green tallied 13 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals while keeping the Warriors’ intensity high by barking at opponents, referees, and fans. Can you imagine what it must have been like for Golden State’s young guys in their first closeout game, surrounded by all that noise, watching Green stand tall and roar back? That’s a true warrior spirit.

And Wiggins was a key factor with 20 points on 9-of-16 shooting with 6 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. He was their leading scorer at halftime with 14 points and kept the wheels from falling off when the Nuggets were trying to run away from the Dubs early.

ALL FOR NAUGHT. Wellp, looks like the Dubs just gotta make this sweep gentlemanly and get it done at home in San Francisco.

95.7 The Game @957thegame

Klay Thompson said everyone wanted the sweep but the "opportunity to close out in front of our fans is still special.”

sam esfandiari @samesfandiari

“Remember, a sweep means one less game of chase center revenue… And your contract extension is coming up…”

For your viewing pleasure, let’s hand it over to Curry and Iguodala for a Compliment Battle.