Nuggets saved by the most unlikely of playoff heroes to force Game 7 vs. Thunder
NY Post
With the Denver Nuggets’ season on the brink, the usual Nikola Jokic bat signal was answered by an unfamiliar face.
Julian Strawther, a reserve player who mostly gets mop-up duty for the Nuggets and was otherwise a “did not play, coach’s decision” in five games these playoffs, caught fire for Denver in the third quarter of their 119-107 Game 6 home win over the Thunder.
Strawther checked into Thursday’s Game 6 with 3:07 left in the third quarter and the Nuggets leading, 80-78.
The second-year pro out of Gonzaga, drafted No. 29 in the 2023 NBA Draft by the Pacers, put on a show, immediately grabbing an offensive rebound and drilling back-to-back 3-pointers that did not even hit the rim.
Strawther scored eight points in the final 97 seconds of the third quarter to help the Nuggets build a 90-82 lead after three quarters and they never looked back.
Strawther’s heroics were much needed for the Nuggets and ended the game with a playoff career-high of 15 points and shot 3 of 4 from beyond the arc.
PORT ST. LUCIE — From the moment he was told he needed surgery on his left hamate bone, Francisco Lindor fixated on the recovery time. Trainers provided the Mets shortstop a six-week pathway to return to play, and Lindor was determined to hit every marker.
Dylan Garand knew the number off the top of his head. He knew that, between the regular season and playoffs, he’d logged over 160 games with AHL Hartford, and he was right. Before the Rangers recalled him Friday, Garand had served as the Wolf Pack’s goaltender 165 times.
SAN DIEGO — As you may have seen elsewhere in this newspaper (and also if you haven’t deleted me yet from your social media), I have a book coming out Tuesday called “The Bosses of The Bronx.” Much of it details the 37 years’ worth of antics, winning, losing, winning again and overall mania of George Steinbrenner’s time with the Yankees.
Don’t close the curtain on “Mean” Joe Greene.
The Knicks are on a five-game winning streak and flooded with concerns.
Dylan Garand knew the number off the top of his head. He knew that, between the regular season and playoffs, he’d logged over 160 games with AHL Hartford, and he was right. Before the Rangers recalled him Friday, Garand had served as the Wolf Pack’s goaltender 165 times.
SAN DIEGO — As you may have seen elsewhere in this newspaper (and also if you haven’t deleted me yet from your social media), I have a book coming out Tuesday called “The Bosses of The Bronx.” Much of it details the 37 years’ worth of antics, winning, losing, winning again and overall mania of George Steinbrenner’s time with the Yankees.
The Knicks are on a five-game winning streak and flooded with concerns.
Don’t close the curtain on “Mean” Joe Greene.
The hockey world is getting a new TV adaptation of another romance series that helped define the genre.
What is there about Giants edger ushers and their fixation with single-digit jersey numbers?
Cade Cunningham, almost inarguably the best player in the East this season, is likely out for the remainder of the regular season. That’s the word out of Detroit following the depressing news that Cunningham punctured a lung when he took a knee to his side Tuesday from Washington’s Tre Johnson while chasing a loose ball.
Legal problems continue to follow ex-NHLer Billy Tibbetts.