Back to health, Porter and Murray help Nuggets to next round

DENVER (AP) —Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic has his bandmates back together.They’re making up for lost time, too.

Paired againin the playoffswith Jamal MurrayandMichael Porter Jr., Jokic and his crew made quick work ofshort-handed Minnesota, closing out the Timberwolves with a 112-109wininGame 5 of their first-round seriesTuesday night. Denver,the No. 1 seed in the West, will face a Phoenix Suns team led byits own terrific trio — Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Kevin Durant —startingSaturdayat BallArena.

The trifectaof Murray, Porter and Jokic haven’t been plugged in at the sametime for the playoffs since the NBA bubble in 2020. It was amagical time, too, in Florida, when the team advanced to theWestern Conference Finals, where they lost to LeBron James and theeventual champion Los Angeles Lakers.

It seems solong ago, with Murray missing the last two versions of the playoffsas he recovered from a torn left ACL and Porter sitting out lastseason’s postseason due to a balky back.

But they knewthat once they were all reunited, they could be a powerfulforce.

They flashedthat Tuesday by doing a little bit of everything. There was Murray,coming up big at crunch time on his way to 35 points. And Jokic,the reigning back-to-back NBA MVP who did his usual thing with 28points, 17 boards and 12 assists. Porter, too, who despitestruggling from the field found a way to contribute with defense —something he wasn’t always known for — and by grabbing 10 rebounds.He also scored eight crucial points in the fourth quarter.

“It was goodto be back in the playoffs and just be playing at a high levelalong with Jamal,” said Porter, who swished two big 3-pointers tohelp Denver fend off Anthony Edwards and the plucky Timberwolves.“It’s a good feeling.”

A year ago,guard/forward Bruce Brown was swept out of the postseason as amember — along with Durant — of the Brooklyn Nets. Brown did hishomework as he looked for a new team last summer and liked the whathe saw in the Mile High City. He and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope havegiven the Nuggets better depth in these playoffs.

“I just knewthey had a bunch of great players,” said Brown, who wore a cowboyhat as he walked out of the locker room after a game in which theNuggets went 32 of 36 from the free throw line. “I’m very impressed(with this team).”

Next up, aSuns team that swept the Nuggets in the second round of the 2021playoffs. But that was without Murray. This is a revamped Nuggetscast.

Phoenix has anew look, too, with Durant coming over from the Nets as part ofblockbuster deal at the NBA’s trade deadline day.

This could bethe start of something good. Despite Denver being the top seed —and Phoenix being No. 4 — the Nuggets feel overlooked.

“Nobody isout there picking us to win,” Nugget forward Jeff Green said. “Weknow we have what it takes to win. We’ve just got to keepshowcasing.”

First, sometime to rest — and celebrate.

Nuggets coachMichael Malone wants his players to appreciate what they justaccomplished. Him, too, as he earned his 25th playoff win to breaka tie with Doug Moe and become the Nuggets’ winningest coach in theNBA playoffs.

“To win aseries in the playoffs is hard,” Malone said. “So I’m really proudof our guys.”

The Suns andNuggets split their season series 2-2. But it was hard to gain anysort of read into the series as Jokic sat out the last two, so hehasn’t played the Suns with Durant.

Both teamsput on quite a show on Christmas night, withAaron Gordon turninginone of the most spectacular dunks of the season. It paved the wayto a 128-125 overtime win where Jokic had 41 points, 15 boards and15 assists.

“Probably,they’re the favorites to win the championship,” Jokic said. “It’sgoing to be a big challenge for us.”

These are thetypes of moments Porter pondered when he was sidelined with the badback last year.

“I wasn’ttrying to look too far ahead, but to get back here and becompetitive in a playoff series, man, it’s a great feeling,” Portersaid. “Especially considering everything I’ve been through.”