![]() But Ishbia didn’t surrender the ball, forcefully held it from Jokić and inserted himself into the game in a way that you can’t do as an owner. He did make contact, which is something the league never wants with somebody in the stands. Looking at the video, Jokić did brush Ishbia with his forearm. What isn’t clear is if the NBA will take further action against Jokić, either in the form of a fine or a suspension for Game 5. ![]() Ishbia dropped into his chair, a fan was ejected and Jokić was given an unsportsmanlike technical foul. Late in the second quarter, Jokić tried to retrieve a loose ball that went out of bounds from Phoenix owner Matt Ishbia, eventually brushing him off with a forearm when Ishbia wouldn’t surrender the ball, which had been turned over to Denver on a rebound. There is an element, however, that involves Nikola Jokić, that the Nuggets are going to have to sweat out on Monday. The defense, the film study, making adjustments, figuring out rotations on Booker and Durant, that part is within Denver’s control. We have to have a much better urgency on the defensive end.” They know how we’re guarding those two players, (Durant and Booker), and they did a good job tonight of making us pay for it. They scored 129 points tonight, and we haven’t done a good job of taking anything away. “We left it somewhere in the desert, because it didn’t arrive in Phoenix. “What’s clear is that our defense didn’t show up this weekend,” Malone said. And now, for the first time in the postseason, they are entering a game on Tuesday night with real pressure to win. All of those changes, they’ve gone towards flipping a series that seemed short-lived as early as five days ago.Īs a result, the Nuggets, the top playoff seed in the Western Conference, have a battle on their collective hands. Figuring out that playing Deandre Ayton major minutes has a real shelf life. Most importantly, Phoenix coach Monty Williams has made adjustments that have appeared to turn things around. All three of them were instrumental over the weekend as the momentum in this series has shifted. All three of them were non-factors early in the series. More importantly, in a series where the Suns struggled to find help for Booker and Durant for two games, those guys have gotten timely shots that have proven to be daggers from the guys off the bench. Denver, after playing well defensively in two games, has allowed Devin Booker and Kevin Durant to find their collective legs in this series and the results have been deadly for the Nuggets. That being said, the Nuggets have some things to figure out.Ī 129-124 loss in Sunday night’s Game 4, combined with Friday night’s loss in Game 3 exposed some things to Nuggets head coach Michael Malone and his team that clearly need adjusting, and maybe even overhauling. ![]() That won’t happen unless they lose a game at Ball Arena in Tuesday night’s Game 5 against the Phoenix Suns. ![]() Nikola Jokic (15) of the Denver Nuggets rushes to retrieve the game ball as Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia inserts himself into the action by clutching the ball as he helps Josh Okogie (2) to his feet after Okogie flew into the stands during the second quarter at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Sunday, May 7, 2023.PHOENIX - The Denver Nuggets aren’t in real trouble yet. At the very least, it is likely that the league will consider a possible fine for Ishbia, who disrupted the flow of play by denying Jokic the ball. It's less clear what recourse the NBA will have in an incident between a player and an owner. Under normal circumstances, a fan involved in such an incident would usually be ejected, according to CBS Sports. In December Ishiba bought the Suns and the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury for $4 billion. Ishbia has only been the Suns' owner for a few months, purchasing the team from the embattled Robert Sarver. The tiff didn't seem to bother Jokic either - the MVP runner-up finished with 53 points on 20-of-30 shooting. He was back in his usual seats in the second half. Ishbia told The Associated Press at halftime that he was "fine" and more worried about the game than the altercation. "He got us a point!" Booker said with a grin. ![]()
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