Three stars from Monday's NBA playoffs
The Pelicans and Lakers are going home, while the Celtics are a game away from advancing. Here are three stars from Monday's night of NBA playoff action.
Boston Celtics guard Derrick White | 38 points, eight 3PM, three blocks
White set a career playoff high with 38 points, making eight of his 15 three-pointers. He started the game with 16 points in the first quarter as Boston took a double-digit lead, then led the team with six points in the second. He also delivered three blocks, a very robust total for a player who stands 6-foot-4, as Boston took a 3-1 series lead with a 102-88 win over the Miami Heat.
On a night where Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combined to shoot 12-for-32 and Kristaps Porzingis only scored seven points before leaving with an injury, White stepped up big. Tatum explained how White makes Boston so dangerous.
"On any given night, we can have a guy like that erupt and win us a a playoff game," Tatum said in his postgame news conference.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 24 points, 10 rebounds
The Thunder's MVP finalist scored 24 points for the second straight game, and finished the Thunder's four-game sweep of the New Orleans Pelicans averaging 27.3 points and shooting 47.6 percent. Monday night, as Oklahoma City came from behind to get a 97-89 win, SGA also delivered on the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds.
He also did it battling an ankle injury that he suffered when he landed on his teammate's foot on a shot attempt. It didn't stop him from icing the game with a big jumper late. Maybe he wanted to start his ankle treatment early and not worry about playing a fifth game against the Pelicans.
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic | 25 points, 20 rebounds, nine assists
Jamal Murray deservedly got the glory after a second game-winner clinched the Nuggets' first round series against the Los Angeles Lakers, 108-106. But Nikola Jokic did the dirty work in the win, grabbing 20 rebounds against a frantic Lakers team fighting for their lives. He shot 12-for-21, came one assist short of a triple-double and did it without shooting a single free throw.
But the Lakers' 18 extra free throw attempts and a replay-reversed foul on Jokic late didn't stop the Nuggets from eliminating LeBron James and the Lakers from the playoffs for the second straight year. Jokic is simply the perfect equalizer to the Lakers' size and interior toughness. It helped that Denver got 46 minutes from forwards Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon in a Game 5 that felt a lot like a Game 7.
Down the stretch, Denver went to what Malone called "the best two-man game in the NBA." The last 13 Nuggets points were scored by Murray and the reigning Finals MVP, who move on for another playoff rematch, this time with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
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