Game ID: 22300906
Boston Celtics @ Denver Nuggets
Thursday, March 7, 2024 at 10:00 PM ET
Ball Arena, Denver, CO
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DEN 30 32 28 25 115BOS 28 26 26 29 109
BOS @ DEN ScoutingBOS @ DEN Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
DEN availability going into 2/28 · 2 days' restOUT Jordan missed 4 since 2/14, out tonight
BACK Caldwell-Pope back 2/12 after 2, 23 min since (72% of 32)
DEN availability going into 2/29 · back-to-backOUT Jordan missed 5 since 2/14, out tonight
DEN availability going into 3/02 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 6 since 2/14, out tonight
DEN availability going into 3/05 · 2 days' restOUT Jordan missed 7 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 2 since 2/29, out tonight
DEN availability going into 3/07 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 8 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 3 since 2/29, out tonight
DEN availability going into 3/09 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 9 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 4 since 2/29, returns tonight: 2 min (16% of 11)
DEN availability going into 3/11 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 10 since 2/14, out tonight
BACK Strawther back 3/09 after 4, 2 min since (16% of 11)
DEN availability going into 3/13 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 11 since 2/14, out tonight
BACK Strawther back 3/09 after 4, 2 min since (16% of 11)
NEW Murray 33 to 39 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 3/15 · 1 day's restOUT Jordan missed 12 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 2 since 3/11, returns tonight: 1 min (7% of 11)
BOS availability going into 2/27 · 2 days' restOUT Queta missed 2 since 2/22, out tonight
BOS availability going into 3/01 · 2 days' restOUT Tillman missed 2 since 2/24, returns tonight: 15 min (123% of 12)
OUT Queta missed 3 since 2/22, out tonight
BOS availability going into 3/03 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 4 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 3/01 after 2, 15 min since (123% of 12)
BOS availability going into 3/05 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 5 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 3/01 after 2, 16 min since (134% of 12)
BOS availability going into 3/07 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 6 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 3/01 after 2, 16 min since (134% of 12)
BOS availability going into 3/09 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 7 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Brissett missed 2 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 3/01 after 2, 15 min since (126% of 12)
BOS availability going into 3/11 · 1 day's restOUT Queta missed 8 since 2/22, returns tonight: 2 min (17% of 11)
OUT Brissett missed 3 since 3/05, returns tonight: 19 min (183% of 10)
BACK Tillman back 3/01 after 2, 15 min since (126% of 12)
BOS availability going into 3/12 · back-to-backOUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 3/09, out tonight
OUT Tillman missed 2 since 3/09, returns tonight: 26 min (215% of 12)
BACK Queta back 3/11 after 8, 2 min since (17% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 3/11 after 3, 19 min since (183% of 10)
BOS availability going into 3/14 · 1 day's restOUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 3/09, out tonight
BACK Tillman back 3/12 after 2, 26 min since (215% of 12)
BACK Queta back 3/11 after 8, 2 min since (17% of 11)
BACK Brissett back 3/11 after 3, 18 min since (171% of 10)
NEW Kornet 15 to 21 min over the last 4
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 105, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 25 and Murray at 23 a game. One day's rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 101, shooting 52 percent and 43 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 27 and Tatum at 27 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-9 a night and Denver plus-3 and the arc, Boston at 43 percent from three to Denver's 38. Call it Boston 114, Denver 111, Denver keeping it close.
2/28 vs SAC 117-96 — DEN notes
DEN won 117-96. DEN shot 53% (46 of 86) to SAC's 40%, 15 of 35 from three. J. Murray led with 32 (13 of 15, 5 of 6 from three); Gordon added 17, Caldwell-Pope 16. The hinge was Q3, 35-17: a lead of 10 became 28, and the lead reached 32. Gordon was the night's best plus/minus at +40.
2/29 vs MIA 103-97 — DEN notes
DEN won 103-97. DEN shot 43% (36 of 84) to MIA's 42%, 12 of 34 from three. Porter Jr. led with 30 (12 of 23, 4 of 10 from three); Jokić added 18, Caldwell-Pope 18. The hinge was Q1, 36-20: from level to 16 ahead. Jokić was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
3/02 @ LAL 124-114 — DEN notes
DEN won 124-114. DEN shot 59% (54 of 92) to LAL's 53%, 11 of 26 from three. The glass went 47-31 for them. Jokić led with 35 (16 of 25, 1 of 5 from three); Porter Jr. added 25, Murray 24. The hinge was Q4, 35-25: from level to 10 ahead. DEN trailed 58-66 at the half and won the second half 66-48. Jokić was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
3/05 vs PHX 107-117 — DEN notes
DEN lost 107-117 in 1 overtime. DEN shot 43% (41 of 96) to PHX's 44%, 15 of 40 from three, and got to the line 14 times to PHX's 22. DEN turned it over 14 times to PHX's 9, and PHX turned those into 9 steals. Murray led with 28 (12 of 25, 2 of 6 from three); Jokić added 25, Porter Jr. 20. Q4 was theirs, 21-12, the deficit cut from 9 to 0, but the other 4 periods went 105-86 against them. A. Gordon's -22 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/07 vs BOS 115-109 — DEN notes
DEN won 115-109. DEN shot 50% (45 of 90) to BOS's 45%, 4 of 21 from three. DEN turned it over 7 times to BOS's 12. Jokić led with 32 (11 of 19, 10 of 10 at the line); Murray added 19, Gordon 16. The hinge was Q2, 32-26: a lead of 2 became 8. Watson was the night's best plus/minus at +11.
3/09 vs UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 107, shooting 50 percent and 37 from three, 15 free throws a game; Jokić at 25 and Murray at 22 a game. One day's rest. Utah comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 120, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Sexton at 22 and Markkanen at 18 a game. Without Markkanen (2 straight), Kessler (4 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the defense, Denver allowing 107 a night to Utah's 120 and the line, where Utah takes 21 free throws a game to Denver's 15. Call it Denver 118, Utah 111.
3/11 vs TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 112, shooting 52 percent and 40 from three, 16 free throws a game; Jokić at 27 and Murray at 23 a game. One day's rest. Toronto comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 123, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 18 free throws a game; Barrett at 21 and Quickley at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Brown (4 straight), Ramsey (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-1 a night and Toronto minus-10 and the defense, Denver allowing 112 a night to Toronto's 123. Call it Denver 120, Toronto 110, Denver by 10.
3/13 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 112, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 20 free throws a game; Butler III at 24 and Rozier at 18 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Herro (8 straight), Richardson (11 straight), Wright (5 straight). 2 days' rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 116, shooting 54 percent and 40 from three, 15 free throws a game; Jokić at 31 and Murray at 27 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Miami wins, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it Miami 114, Denver 113, Denver keeping it close.
3/15 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 115, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 19 free throws a game; Johnson at 20 and Vassell at 19 a game. Without Osman (3 straight). 2 days' rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 111, shooting 52 percent and 38 from three, 17 free throws a game; Jokić at 26 and Murray at 25 a game. That is 4 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, San Antonio giving it away 14 times a game to Denver's 10. Call it Denver 115, San Antonio 113, San Antonio keeping it close.
2/27 vs PHI 117-99 — BOS notes
BOS won 117-99. BOS shot 53% (39 of 74) to PHI's 39%, 5 of 22 from three, and went to the line 37 times to PHI's 12 — 34 points from the stripe to their 11. BOS turned it over 14 times to PHI's 9. The glass went 56-28 for them. Brown led with 31 (11 of 14, 8 of 10 at the line); Tatum added 29, Porziņģis 23. The hinge was Q3, 33-24: a lead of 2 became 11, and the lead reached 20. White was the night's best plus/minus at +31.
3/01 vs DAL 138-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 138-110. BOS shot 55% (52 of 94) to DAL's 47%, 21 of 43 from three. Tatum led with 32 (10 of 19, 5 of 9 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); Brown added 25, Porziņģis 24. The hinge was Q4, 36-20: a lead of 12 became 28. White was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
3/03 vs GSW 140-88 — BOS notes
BOS won 140-88. BOS shot 55% (53 of 96) to GSW's 39%, 25 of 49 from three. BOS turned it over 7 times to GSW's 17. Brown led with 29 (11 of 19, 5 of 10 from three); Tatum added 27, Pritchard 19. The hinge was Q1, 44-22: from level to 22 ahead, and the lead reached 56. Tatum was the night's best plus/minus at +40.
3/05 @ CLE 104-105 — BOS notes
BOS lost 104-105. BOS shot 42% (39 of 93) to CLE's 43%, 15 of 38 from three. BOS turned it over 13 times to CLE's 8, and CLE turned those into 11 steals. The glass went 53-42 for them. Tatum led with 26 (8 of 21, 5 of 9 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Porziņģis added 24, Brown 21. Q1 was theirs, 33-25, but the other 3 periods went 80-71 against them. They led by as many as 22. Holiday's -14 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/07 @ DEN 109-115 — BOS notes
BOS lost 109-115. BOS shot 45% (41 of 91) to DEN's 50%, 11 of 38 from three. BOS turned it over 12 times to DEN's 7, and DEN turned those into 10 steals. Brown led with 41 (16 of 29, 2 of 7 from three, 7 of 14 at the line); Porziņģis added 24, Tatum 15. Q4 was theirs, 29-25, the deficit cut from 10 to 6, but the other 3 periods went 90-80 against them. Tillman's -12 in 13 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/09 @ PHX — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 112, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; Durant at 29 and Beal at 18 a game. Without Booker (3 straight), Okogie (3 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 103, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 26 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-10 a night and Phoenix plus-3 and the turnovers, Phoenix giving it away 15 times a game to Boston's 11. Call it Boston 116, Phoenix 112, Phoenix keeping it close.
3/11 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 118, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 20 free throws a game; Simons at 28 and Banton at 19 a game. Without Grant (2 straight), Sharpe (26 straight), Walker (2 straight). One day's rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 105, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 15 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 26 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 105 a night to Portland's 118 and the turnovers, Portland giving it away 17 times a game to Boston's 11. Call it Boston 118, Portland 111.
3/12 @ UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Sexton at 21 and Clarkson at 20 a game. Without Markkanen (3 straight), Hendricks (2 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 103, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 15 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 25 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Porziņģis (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Boston allowing 103 a night to Utah's 123 and the line, where Utah takes 22 free throws a game to Boston's 15. Call it Boston 119, Utah 114.
3/14 vs PHX — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 107, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 16 free throws a game; Brown at 29 and Tatum at 27 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Porziņģis (3 straight). One day's rest. Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 113, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Durant at 34 and Beal at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Okogie (5 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Phoenix giving it away 14 times a game to Boston's 10 and the defense, Boston allowing 107 a night to Phoenix's 113. Call it Boston 117, Phoenix 111.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
DENAG A. Gordon
CB C. Braun
JM J. Murray
JO Jokic
KC K. Caldwell-Pope
MP M. Porter Jr.
NJ N. Jokić
PW P. Watson
RJ R. Jackson
ZN Z. Nnaji
BOSAH A. Horford
DW D. White
JB J. Brown
JH J. Holiday
JT J. Tatum
KP K. Porziņģis
PP P. Pritchard
PO Porzingis
SH S. Hauser
XT X. Tillman
DEN/BOS the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Nikola Jokic's triple-double helps Nuggets to season sweep of Celtics with 115-109 win
DENVER -- — Sometimes, Nikola Jokic 's triple-double is as meaningful as it is magical.
That was certainly the case Thursday night when Jokic recorded his 20th triple-double of the season and the Denver Nuggets withstood a furious fourth-quarter surge by Boston to beat the Celtics 115-109.
That gave the reigning NBA champs a sweep of their season series with the Eastern Conference leaders.
Jokic had 32 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists, several of them on alley-oops to Aaron Gordon , who had 16 points on seven dunks and a running hook.
Jamal Murray added 19 points and eight assists as the Nuggets improved to 7-1 since the All-Star break.
It was Jokic's 30th career 30-point triple-double.
“He’s just an incredible basketball player,” Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis said. "Some things I learned from him today, actually. He’s just so smart, so crafty, so many things you don’t see that he does on the floor that helps that team win. It’s incredible. Whenever you overhelp just a little bit, he’ll find Gordon, he’ll find all these guys. It speaks to how valuable he is for them.”
Asked what exactly he had learned, Porzingis said, “a couple of tricks he does, I'll leave it at that.”
Maybe some of that sorcery Porzingis was referencing had to do with the Jokic-Gordon alley-oop game that's becoming as big a part of Denver's crunch-time arsenal as the Jokic-Murray pick-and-roll.
Gordon's best dunk came off a missed layup by Jokic with two minutes remaining. Gordon corralled the rebound with his right hand and windmilled it through the basket for a 109-103 lead.
“It was a bad miss," Jokic said, “but a great dunk.”
The two teamed up for a game-sealing alley-oop with 20 seconds left after Jayson Tatum 's 3-pointer for the lead with 40 seconds remaining rimmed out.
Jaylen Brown scored a season-high 41 points and had 14 rebounds for the Celtics, who hadn't lost consecutive games since early November. But Brown was just 7 of 14 from the foul line.
“Maybe it's the elevation,” Brown said. “I felt fine shooting the ball.”
Boston missed nine free throws overall, while the Nuggets missed just one of 22 foul shots.
Porzingis added 24 points and 12 rebounds for Boston, and Tatum had 15 on a tough shooting night.
The Nuggets' bench outscored Boston's reserves 28-10, led by Peyton Watson 's 11 points and stellar perimeter defense.
Both teams were coming off losses that ended long winning streaks. The Celtics' 105-104 defeat at Cleveland on Tuesday snapped an 11-game run, and Denver's 117-107 overtime loss to Phoenix halted the Nuggets' six-game surge.
If these teams are barreling toward a collision in the NBA Finals in June, this was a tantalizing preview. Both coaches viewed the showdown as something of a measuring stick heading into the home stretch, with Denver's Michael Malone noting Boston's NBA-best record and Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla calling the reigning champs the league's benchmark.
The game was everything expected of two prime contenders.
Denver's dynamic duo each had buzzer-beaters in the first half, with Murray sinking a 30-footer to end the first quarter and Jokic banking in a 12-foot shot with Porzingis in his face that gave Denver a 62-54 lead at halftime.
Boston quickly erased that deficit with a pair of 3s from Porzingis and a layup from Brown after the break, however.