The Denver Nuggets can call themselves NBA champions at last after beating the Miami Heat Monday night, 94-89. As much as Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray have done a masterful job of carrying the Nuggets from start to finish, Denver's supporting cast also managed a splendid job of fulfilling their roles to the best of their abilities. That could not be better exemplified perhaps than the huge defensive play of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the final minute of Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.
With the Nuggets playing defense with under 30 seconds remaining in regulation and ahead by just a point, Heat star Jimmy Butler tried to attack down the lane and kick out a pass to Max Strus but that was perfectly telegraphed by Caldwell-Pope, who came up with arguably the greatest defensive play in the history of the Nuggets franchise.
Jimmy Butler's pass is intercepted by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the Nuggets are up 3 with 24.7 seconds remaining 👀pic.twitter.com/7poxIUVniF
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) June 13, 2023
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also got fouled by Kevin Love after that steal leading to two made free-throws for added breathing room for the Nuggets.
Caldwell-Pope finished the game with 11 points, four rebounds, and two assists. He also provided excellent defense all game long, coming up with two steals and three blocks in 34 minutes of action as part of the starting unit. Nikola Jokic paced the Nuggets with 28 points on 12-for-16 shooting from the field, while Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray chipped in 16 and 14 points, respectively.
The Nuggets had plenty of heroes in the 2023 NBA Finals, and that certainly includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who probably will never ever has to buy a beer whenever he's in Denver.
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