Grading the Thunder’s overtime loss to the Nuggets

Best Thunder bench performer:

The Thunder needs shooting, and  Isaiah Joe shoots. Joe drained seven threes against Denver, including some big shots in the fourth quarter. His biggest three of the night came with under a minute to go in overtime to cut the Nuggets’ lead to two after a jump ball scramble. Joe’s seven threes set not only a new career-high in three-point makes but also set up the first 20-point game of his career with 21. His spectacular night from beyond the arc set a new season-high in made threes for any Thunder player, surpassing Eugene Omoruyi and Tre Mann at five apiece.

Best Nugget:

He won the MVP these last two seasons for a reason. The Joker had to step up on a night when Denver missed Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. Jokic put together his best scoring night of the season by dominating inside. He scored 39 points with various post moves while getting hit repeatedly. Jokic made his way to the line for 18 shots, making 16. As usual, his impact transcended scoring. The big man grabbed ten boards on the night and dished out nine assists, one shy of joining his teammate Bruce Brown in the triple-double club in this one.

Closing thoughts:

Playing games like this one is important to the future success of the Thunder. Seeing how Jokic and his counterparts closed out this game is something OKC can use moving forward to adjust its game plan in clutch situations. While it’s always great to see a team try to win as a collective, the NBA is a star-driven league, and the bigger star came out on top.