Average of 17 points and 7 rebounds per game, two finals + one draw! If Gordon misses the tiebreak, can the Nuggets win?

In the sixth game of the

series, the Nuggets defeated the Thunder 119-107 at home, tied the score 3-3, and dragged it into the tiebreak battle. It is worth mentioning that in the semi-finals last season and the first round of this season, the Nuggets, the Timberwolves and the Clippers both played in the tiebreak battle, so this is also their third consecutive round of tiebreak battle.

In addition, in the Jokic era, the Nuggets had played six tiebreak games before, which was the third time they had played in the first two rounds of the playoffs, with the previous two times in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Jokic also lost only two tiebreak battles, namely the 2019 semi-finals and the last season semi-finals.

So, as long as Jokic leads the team, even if the Nuggets tiebreak battle is a away game, they still have the hope of winning. In the first game of this round of series, the Nuggets completed a major reversal away and defeated the Thunder. As long as they can win the tiebreaker, the Nuggets will still have a chance to win the championship. Moreover, since the other three remaining teams are the Timberwolves, the Knicks, and the Pacers, their overall strength is relatively not very strong and they are all dark horses, so this tiebreaker may also determine the title of the championship.

Although the Nuggets and Jokic have rich experience in tiebreak battles, they also have a huge hidden danger, that is, Gordon is likely to miss the tiebreak battle. Although the Nuggets successfully won the sixth game, Gordon unfortunately suffered a hamstring injury in the last moment and is likely to be unable to play in the tiebreak battle.

Gordon's performance in the playoffs this season was very outstanding, and he can be said to be the number one contributor to the Nuggets. He averaged 38.2 minutes per game, scored 16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists, and shot a 48.5% shooting percentage. Although Gordon's data is still not as good as Jokic and Murray, he hit two finals and a key three-pointer to drag into overtime. It can be said that without Gordon, the Nuggets might have been eliminated by the Clippers in the first round, and it is unlikely that they will stick to the tiebreak battle in the second round.

Of course, Gordon can only be regarded as the third core of the Nuggets at most. Jokic and Murray are the two real cores of the Nuggets and are also the main contributors to winning the championship in 2023. So even if there is no Gordon in the tiebreak battle, as long as Jokic and Murray can stand up, the Nuggets still have a chance. The key is to see how they perform.