Nikola Jokic returned to his vintage shooting form with a triple-double on Monday night. At home, the Denver Nuggets lead Game 5 97% of the time to win 125-113. It was important to turn the tide against the Minnesota Timberwolves, who were shorthanded without Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo. The 19,907 fans certainly played a part throughout the night to limit the Wolves star who has been a thorn in their side.
Chants of “McDaniels sucks” echoed inside the Ball Arena during the Nuggets‘ 125-113 win. They even booed him every time he touched the ball. Despite the hostile environment and the loss, the Wolves star stayed unfazed.
“I mean, it was cool, it didn’t affect me at all,” McDaniels said in the post-game media conference. “I’ve been in foul trouble before, early in games. It’s just going out there and being competitive. I hear the crowd, none of it affects me. It just brings the energy. I really didn’t feel too much. Besides the crowd, it’s all fun to me. I don’t really care. I feed into it. We just got to get the job done next game and then there’s no more talking.”
In Game 5, Randle led the charge, posting a team-high 27 points while adding nine rebounds and six assists to the effort. While Randle was impressive, McDaniels struggled to get going due to early foul trouble; he had four fouls after the third frame and picked up his fifth with 8 minutes still left in the game. The Wolves star contributed 13 points on 5-11 shooting from the field. The reason why both those factors did not affect him was that he still produced his series average against the Nuggets.
He shot 45.5% from the field, had 3 rebounds, and 1 block. The only thing that affected him was his turnovers. McDaniels coughed up the ball 4 times, and the Timberwolves conceded 25 turnovers inside the hostile Ball Arena. The 25-year-old admitted his mistake, “But this is on me, I’ve got to be better.” The reaction from the Mile High City faithful was expected because McDaniels has been the troublemaker in the series.
After Game 2, McDaniels labeled the Nuggets “all bad defenders.” Denver didn’t have much of a response in the lead-up to Game 3 or during the game itself. On Saturday, McDaniels again became the villain after not following the unwritten “dribble it out” rule. Nikola Jokic charged up to him and the leaked audio revealed their conversation.
The Joker stated, “Why did you do that?” McDaniels was unfazed by the contact and answered, “You a b*tch, it’s the playoffs!” The dustup resulted in ejections and fines but no suspensions. Despite not having any support inside the arena, McDaniels remained resilient and caused problems for Nikola Jokic, Jonas Valanciunas, and even Christian Braun. With 8:50 left in the third frame, Jamal Murray set an illegal screen, and an offensive foul call was made. But that time, Nikola Jokic was already set in motion to rattle the basket, but only to be thwarted by McDaniels once again.
He did block the attempt, but his trailing arm caught the Joker, who was not backing down after last game’s skirmish. Referee and Wolves star Mike Conley quickly stopped the Joker in his tracks from advancing towards McDaniels. 5 personal fouls, no support from the crowd, and still Jaden McDaniels pestered the Nuggets. And by his comments, he will continue to do so in the next game too.
The post “I Feed Into It”: Timberwolves Star Embraces Villain Role Against Nikola Jokic, Nuggets After Ball Arena Turns Hostile appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.