Nuggets-Clippers Game 6 3-Pointers: Turnovers, too much James Harden doom Denver

Three quick takeaways from Nuggets - loss to Clippers in Event Related Articles James Harden Kawhi Leonard shine as Clippers push Nuggets to Contest As Serbia s two best players clash in NBA playoffs Bogdan Bogdanovic recalls first time facing Nikola Jokic In search for playoff fuel Jamal Murray motivated by Kris Dunn being drafted higher in Renck Jamal Murray blitzed Clippers but Russell Westbrook catalyst behind Nuggets rout Nikola Jokic admitted Challenge was not my night Nuggets still blew out Clippers Stomach turning There is nothing funny about turnovers and Joker fading into the background The Nuggets spoiled a terrific opening punch with sloppy play to open the second quarter They committed five turnovers in the first four minutes as the Clippers used a smaller lineup leaning heavily on Nicolas Batum instead of relying on Ben Simmons a ghost in a uniform DeAndre Jordan looked lost forcing Nikola Jokic back into the event It made sense to keep the Clippers within reach But interim coach David Adelman and the Nuggets paid a price Jokic finished the first half of for points But foul trouble and perhaps fatigue played a role in a quiet finish Jokic had five points in the second half on of shooting and when Ivica Zubac blocked his driving layup with seconds remaining the three-time MVP longed a foul it sent the Clippers into a Championship James Gang Small Championship James Harden helped the Nuggets take a - series advantage entering Thursday night It matches his history of postseason fades as his career average sinks from to points in Games - in a series Harden scored points in Games and combined He attempted only four -pointers He flipped the script with a more aggressive approach Harden posted points using a variety of moves from stepback s he sank three to driving layups That s the bad news The good news is that he has not resembled that competitor at Ball Arena since Championship Powell s Triple Norman Powell has disappeared in Denver during this series averaging points a battle It is hard to remember an key sequence he has produced But a return to Los Angeles brought his offense back to life The Clippers guard scored points in the third quarter finding space in transition and behind the arc He eclipsed points in all three games at Intuit Dome including on Thursday The Clippers went for from -point range in the first half Led by Powell the Clippers drained of behind the arc in the third outscoring Denver - Want more Nuggets news Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to get all our NBA analysis