Nikola Jokic's heroics once again saved the day for the Denver Nuggets as he singlehandedly forced overtime against the Dallas Mavericks at the Ball Arena on Thursday. With the home team down by two with last than three ticks left in regulation, The Joker took the matters into his own hands.
Denver had a hard time inbounding the basketball against the tight Dallas defense, up until Jokic made himself available on the left wing. The seven-foot Serbian took his sweet time against defender Willie Cauley-Stein before hitting a nasty stepback jumper right over his face for the tie. Here's the amazing play, which will no doubt fill today's highlight reels.
This comes off the heels of an equally clutch shot by Mavs stretch big Maxi Kleber. His three with seconds to play gave Dallas a temporary 2-point lead before Jokicâs heroics.
Jokic's bucket hit nothing but nylon, giving the Nuggets five extra minutes to get the job done.
Unfortunately for Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, they failed to complete the comeback and lost in overtime, 124-117. Dallas outscored Denver in the extra period, 15-8, and extended their winning streak to two.
Jokic still put up big numbers of 38 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and two steals, while shooting 14-of-31 from the field and 4-for-10 from distance. However, Luka Doncic's near triple-double of 38 points, 13 assists, and nine boards was just too much to overcome.
The Nuggets fell to 3-5 in the season, while the Mavs improved to 4-4. The Joker, meanwhile, is having a phenomenal start to the 2020-21 campaign, averaging a triple-double heading to Thursday's match.