Nikola Jokic throws an elbow and reacts angrily after an unsportsmanlike play by Thunder Lu Dort
In the NBA, when you put the two best teams in the Western Conference on the same floor with the last two MVPs, the environment doesn't just feel like the playoffs, it is the playoffs. That was exactly the vibe in Oklahoma City as the Thunder squeezed out a 127-121 overtime victory against the Denver Nuggets. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was electric in his return to the court after missing nine games, dropping 36 points and 9 assists, while Nikola Jokic did "Joker" things, putting up a monster triple-double with 23 points, 17 rebounds, and 14 assists. But the box score doesn't tell the whole story. Ever since the Thunder bounced Denver in a grueling seven-game series last season, there has been palpable "hate" between these two squads. Yesterday, that lingering tension boiled over into a near-brawl that saw an ejection and […]