The first-round matchup between the Portland Trail Blazers and Denver Nuggets has been an eye-popping series to watch. As the series is knotted up at 2-2, Game 5 will be crucial to see which team can have a 3-2 series edge. As the Nuggets have home-court advantage in the next matchup, it will be up to them to take advantage in front of their fans to swing momentum their way.
The Blazers began the series with a dominant 123-109 victory in Game 1. They got great production out of role players in Jusuf Nurkic, Anfernee Simons, and Carmelo Anthony to seal the victory.
Denver would eventually respond with dominant victories in Games 2 and 3 to take a 2-1 series lead. In their two wins, NBA MVP favorite Nikola Jokic had monster 30-plus-point games en route to their victories. As the Nuggets carried momentum into Game 4, Portland put its foot on the gas with a monster blowout performance in Saturday afternoon’s victory. Despite Damian Lillard shooting 1-of-10 from the field, the Blazers got great production from Norman Powell and CJ McCollum to lead the way.
As Game 5 is underway Monday night, both teams will need a big performance as a collective. It's safe to say whoever takes this matchup will have a better chance of winning the series. With that being said, let's look at some bold predictions on what may occur in a pivotal Game 5 between the Blazers and Nuggets in Denver.
1. Damian Lillard will rise to the occasion
Let's not expect Lillard to have a cold shooting performance as he did in Game 4. The Blazers star has come up huge in pivotal playoff games. In the first two games in Denver, Lillard led the way for Portland with 34 points followed by 42 big ones.
With Lillard setting the tone for his team, the rest of the Blazers will follow in his footsteps. The team understands that they do not want another first-round exit like last season. To advance past this series, Lillard will need to have monster games to lead his team past the Nuggets.
2. Nikola Jokic will have a dominant triple-double performance
The Joker will need to be locked in for this Game 5 matchup. If the Nuggets want to take control of this series, it is important that he has one of the best playoff games of his career. Like Lillard, Jokic needs to continue to be the driving force of this team. His ability to lead on and off the floor will be crucial in Monday night’s contest.
It will not only be Jokic’s scoring that will get the job done. His ability to crash the boards and be a decision-maker will also be the key factor in Denver’s victory. The Nuggets have good firepower and should be utilized to their max potential. As Jokic shows versatility on the floor, his ability to impact the game on different levels will become a game changer.
3. The second option for both teams will step up magnificently
The two stars in Lillard and Jokic will need their backup mates to step up tremendously. For Denver, that guy is Michael Porter Jr. Porter only tallied three points in the Nuggets' blowout loss in Game 4. With Game 5 ahead of them, this will be a challenge for him to bounce back and become an offensive force.
Lillard will continue to trust his partner, CJ McCollum, to remain a consistent scorer for Portland. Through four games, McCollum is putting up 21.3 points per game. In order for the Blazers to clinch a victory, he may need to elevate his play and tally 30 points or more. These are moments that McCollum has shown to embrace in the past. When his team has everything on the line, he has stepped up tremendously as the second option.
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