In a captivating battle, the formidable Nikola Jokic-Jamal Murray duo orchestrated a brilliant performance, propelling the Denver Nuggets (22-10) to a hard-fought 120-114 triumph over the Golden State Warriors (15-15).
Despite a challenging shooting day, Jokic demonstrated his mastery at the free-throw line, going a flawless 18 of 18 and accumulating 26 points to secure the Nuggets’ victory, extending their winning streak to five games.
Steve Kerr, the Warriors’ coach, expressed his dissatisfaction with the frequency of Jokic’s free-throw trips, highlighting the necessity for a more balanced reward system in the contemporary NBA.
“I have a problem with how we are legislating the defense out of the game,” Kerr said, per Kendra Andrews of ESPN. “We are enabling players to BS their way to the foul line.
“If I were a fan, I wouldn’t have wanted to watch the second half of that game. It was disgusting. It was just baiting refs into calls, but the refs have to make those calls … the players are really smart in this league.
“For the last decade, they’ve gotten smarter and smarter. We have enabled the players and they are taking full advantage. It’s a parade to the free-throw line and it’s disgusting to watch.”
