Los Angeles Clippers’ Cowhi Leonard #2 and Derrick Jones Jr. #55 will attempt to steal the ball from the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic #15 at the Western Conference First Round NBA playoffs at Intuit Dome on April 26, 2025 in Inglewood, California. Luke Hales/Getty Images/AFP
Denver regained his home court advantage in the NBA Western Conference Quarterfinal Series with the Los Angeles Clippers with a spectacular victory on Saturday, and is now trying to get control in Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Aaron Gordon’s slam defeated the clock, the first walk-off dunk in NBA playoff history.
Currently, the Best Seven series is in three best scenarios, with Nuggets hosting Game 5 and possibly Game 7. The winner of Game 5 has won the series most frequently in history, but Denver has experienced two heartbreaks.
Read: NBA: Nuggets, Clippers hit with six technicians after Skirmish in Game 4
Two times in the past seven seasons, the Nuggets were tied up 2-2 to win Game 5, but lost Game 7 at home. It happened against Portland in 2019 and against Minnesota last season.
Los Angeles, who won Game 2 in Denver, is not disappointed after letting Game 4 get away. How this series should go on.
“It’s just like the 4 or 5 seed series now,” Clippers forward Cowhileonard said. “You usually get some tough fights with these seeds.”
The battle went literally when the team began to be blown away at the end of the first half of Saturday. No one was kicked out, but six technical fouls were called and Michael Porter Jr. was in danger of being stopped when he began to get out of the bench.
Read: NBA: Aaron Gordon’s Dunk, Nuggetstan Clippers in the Tie Series
“It’s a tight, intense playoff series. There’s no team trying to give an inch. The team doesn’t try to get backwards,” Los Angeles guard Norman Powell said. “So it’s going to be chippy. We’re going to fight. We have someone who likes it.”
Leonard plays well offensive and defense in the series, leading the Clippers by scoring with an average of 26.5 points per game. The Nuggets are limited to James Harden after a 32-point effort in Game 1. He averaged 17.7 points in his last three games.
Los Angeles has four players averaged double digits in scores in the series, but they use more benches. Eight players have recorded the game for at least 14 minutes, with Harden’s 39.5 minutes making the team higher.
Denver is more dependent on starters, with three Nicola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Christian Brown taking an average of over 40 minutes. Gordon is there in 39.8 minutes per game.
Read: NBA: Nuggets Clippers Route for Kawhi Leonard Lead Series Lead
Jokic will lead the team with points (28.5), rebounds (13.5) and assists (10.8) of the series. Porter averages 10.5 points despite playing with his injured left shoulder.
The Nuggets’ short bench is even shorter, with Russell Westbrook coming out. He didn’t play Saturday due to a left foot injury, but took part in Denver’s walk-through practice on Monday. Interim coach David Adelman said Westbrook was a game time decision and the team listed veteran security guards as suspicious.
Adelman, who took over the Nuggets with three games left in the regular season, was open about his reliance on his starters.
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“You can’t worry about what they’ll say afterwards,” he said Monday. “Our starting five has to appear on the court for the majority of the game. I will do my best to make sure they get a break.”
