Away win over the Nuggets, this game, the Suns experienced a lot of ups and downs, they once achieved a huge lead of 22 points, but in the final minute of the final quarter were tied or even overtaken, relying on Durant's three-point draw and the sudden outburst of overtime, the Suns did not let the tragedy happen. On the whole, there are many keys to the Suns' victory, such as Durant's self-redemption, Bill's overtime stepping up, Grayson Allen's ungodly touch in the first three quarters, and Eubanks' tough response after Nurkic was troubled by the foul, the Suns can win, all of which are indispensable.
But to be honest, from the perspective of game influence, the Suns' win this time, Yusuf Nurkic's offensive and defensive role, is the key to the Suns' victory. You might think that Nurkic left the court in the last minute because of six fouls, and he was not on the court at key moments. However, Nurkic's impact on Jokic continued throughout the game, and the pressure he put on Jokic caused the latter to not find his form throughout the game.
3-of-4 shooting, 1-of-2 free throws, 7 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks, this is the stat sheet that Nurkic handed over in 30 minutes of playing time, the offensive and defensive efficiency is almost full, and the plus/minus on the court is +9.
It was obvious that Jokic couldn't beat Nurkic. It's so straightforward, the league's new FMVP winner, when facing his former big brother, he has a mess from his mentality to his performance. In the first half, Jokic was only 2-of-7 from the field, and he scored more points after Nurkic went off the court due to a foul problem. And in this game, Jokic only handed out 5 assists, but there were exaggerated 7 turnovers, on the one hand, Nurkic has the ability to defend Jokic alone, the latter can't carry him at all, the Suns never thought about wrapping Jokic, the league's MVP can't play his passing ability. On the other hand, after being exhausted by Nurkic's power and losing all his rhythm, even if he faced Eubanks for a while, Jokic couldn't run or jump, and he let Eubanks play 3-of-3 efficiency, cutting 10 points and 8 rebounds (4 frontcourt rebounds), which is inseparable from Nurkic's influence on Jokic.
Anti-Jokic armor", this is the new nickname that fans have given Nurkic. Of course, the bright-eyed fans are not a game, this is the second time the Suns have met the Nuggets this season, although Jokic scored 21 points and 16 assists last time, but he used 18 shots, and the efficiency is average. Moreover, Nurkic scored 31 points and had a plus/minus of +3 on the court, and the performance of the two men could even be said to be evenly matched. It can be seen that Nurkic can not only completely carry Jokic and does not need anyone's help in defense, but also in the face of his former little brother, Nurkic has an advantage in terms of mentality, he doesn't care what kind of hard power person you are, I will kill you like I did in training when I see you.
3 years and 54 million, this is the remaining contract of Nurkic before the start of the season, when the Suns use Ayton for 3 years and 1When the $0.2 billion contract was exchanged for Nurkic, it can be said that the Suns achieved multiple goals, on the one hand, they got rid of Ayton and lowered the team's salary level. Second, the Suns have found someone who can match Jokic. While you can't say that Nurkic can lock up Jokic and he can't keep Kic in check, then again, you'd be hard-pressed in the league to find a player who can say he can keep Kic in check. In Jokic's mouth, there are three centers that make him feel pressure, they are Embiid, Adams, Nurkic, Embiid is in the East, and he is an MVP, a top-paid player, the Suns can't get it, Adams has been reimbursed for two consecutive seasons, and the remaining Nurkic was obtained by the Suns.
In addition to being able to carry Jokic, during this time, Nurkic made the opponent very uncomfortable in the face of Shen Jing, and he even cut 18 points, 22 rebounds and 7 assists in the face of thick eyebrows, and Nurkic picked up 31 rebounds against the Thunder's small lineup. Of course, Nurkic also has a lot of problems, such as slow movement, easy to be named by guards like Doncic, and can't defend in the face of a small lineup, so he can only hope that the opponent can't shoot, otherwise he won't be able to play, and as a center, Nurkic's finishing efficiency under the basket is indeed a bit low.
However, as mentioned above, 54 million in 3 years, with an average annual salary of less than 20 million, do you go to ** find a player who can carry a big center like Jokic, and will not fall behind in the face of other big men in the league, and has dominance in rebounding? After being dominated by Ayton, Nurkic has nothing to say in terms of value for money. By the way, there is a center who is not afraid of a small lineup, not afraid of being named, Anthony Davis of the Lakers, but on the one hand, his new contract is 3 years 18.6 billion, the average salary is the first in the league, more than 60 million. On the other hand, thick eyebrows meet Jokic, that picture, Lakers fans dare not imagine.