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The Best of the Day: May 27th, 2021
See the best of the day in sports from May 27, 2021 including Austin Rivers' huge 4th quarter for DEN, LeBron's incredible reverse layup, and more!
AAron Ontiveroz, The Denver Post
The ‘Best of the Day’ is a daily PSO original series showcasing the most significant stories, highlights, and facts going on in the land of the NFL, NBA, & MLB every day. Get a recap on EVERYTHING that happened on 5/27 here.
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Portland Trail Blazers Thursday night to take a 2-1 series lead thanks to Austin Rivers’ fourth quarter heroics and another dominant performance from Nikola Jokic. Now down 3-0 after getting blasted again by Milwaukee, the Heat’s run to the Finals in the bubble last year is looking increasingly like a fluke. Also, LeBron converted a highlight-reel reverse layup in the Lakers’ Game 3 win over Phoenix, Deandre Ayton has had the most efficient start to a postseason career ever, and the Pistons walked off the floor after getting swept by the Bulls on this day in 1991.
Here is the best of the day from May 27, 2021:
Austin Rivers’ huge 4th quarter propelled Nuggets past Portland for 2-1 series lead
The Nuggets defeated the Trail Blazers in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead thanks to Austin Rivers‘ big fourth quarter Thursday night. Rivers, who was signed last month when Denver was dealing with injuries, hit four-straight 3-pointers, as he ended up scoring 16 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. While Rivers’ output was surprising, Nikola Jokic‘s was not. The MVP-frontrunner put on another stellar performance with 36 points, 11 rebounds, and five assists.
36 PTS, 11 REB and the GAME-SEALING putback for Nikola Jokic! #NBAPlayoffs @nuggets up 2-1.. Game 4 is Sat. at 4pm/et on TNT pic.twitter.com/hCd4EVB1Wx
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
The Nuggets made 12 3-pt FG in the 1st half, their most in any half of a playoff game in franchise history.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 28, 2021
Of the 10 Nuggets players to appear in the game in the 1st half, 9 of them made at least 1 three-pointer. pic.twitter.com/IAfcjuv37Z
Portland got another big performance from Damian Lillard, who finished with 37 points while playing a game-high 40 minutes. However, it wasn’t enough once again, as the Blazers dropped their second-straight game after taking Game 1 in Denver. They will need to rebound quickly in Game 4 to avoid going down 3-1.
💥 DAME ROCKS THE RIM 💥#NBAPlayoffs on @NBATV pic.twitter.com/aFKyto0Pms
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
Related: Stories of the Day
THE MIAMI HEAT’S 2020 BUBBLE PLAYOFF RUN NOW LOOKS LIKE A FLUKE
When the final playoff matchups were released, the Milwaukee and Miami series looked like it was set to be one of the best in the first round. However, that has not been the case at all thus far. The Heat came back home down 2-0 in the series and were looking to turn things around on their own hardwood, but got blown out for the second straight game instead. With a 3-0 series deficit, it appears that the defending conference champs won’t even make it out of the first round, let alone win a single game.
Miami hasn’t had a top-level offense all year, and it is hurting them badly in the postseason. In the regular season, they were 25th in PPG, and in the bottom half of the league for offensive efficiency, shooting percentage, and three-point percentage. They’ve also only averaged 96.3 points per game in their first-round series. Jimmy Butler is the team’s leading scorer but clearly needs some more scoring help alongside of him.
The addition of Victor Oladipo will add more buckets and hopefully get them back to where they were in 2020. He was supposed to fill the two-way void left from Jae Crowder who was a huge mid-season addition for the Heat last year, but the Oladipo acquisition backfired once his quadriceps injury got in the way of finishing the 2021 season strong. Even though this year was a far cry from their impressive 2020 bubble run, Miami has all the pieces to make the biggest impact in this upcoming offseason.
COLORS KEY | FULL HEAT OUTLOOK
Giannis into teeth of the defense.
— NBA (@NBA) May 27, 2021
Giannis no-look pass to Middleton.
Middleton 4-point play. #NBAPlayoffs on TNT pic.twitter.com/U3VnMi9Pen
Middleton ➡️ Giannis in #PhantomCam.. @Bucks in control on TNT.#FearTheDeer #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/j1qoMW22fa
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
Related: NBA Takeaways of the Day
LeBron lays in athletic reverse
LeBron iso post-up.
— NBA (@NBA) May 28, 2021
LeBron left-shoulder spin.
LeBron reverse.
LeBron things on TNT. #NBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/k6du4Ybqt7
Related: NBA Highlights
C Nikola Jokic, DEN (W @POR): 36 PTS (12-24 FG | 4-7 3P), 5 AST, 11 REB, 0 BLK, 0 STL, 2 TO
#PlayerOfTheDay (5/27/21) - C Nikola Jokic, DEN
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) May 28, 2021
TOP FACTS:
- Led DEN in scoring (36) to take 2-1 series lead vs. POR
- 4th DEN player with 3 straight playoff GP of 30+ PTS
- 36 PPG & 12 RPG on 58% FG/50% 3P/94% FT v. POR
KEY STATS:
36 PTS, 11 REB, 5 AST, 12-24 FG, 4-7 3P https://t.co/rRyFpucBeT
Related: Players of the Day
Denver Nuggets (120) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (115)
[Highlights] #3 NUGGETS (+150; $10.80) d. #6 @BLAZERS (-171; $11.20) 120-115 [DEN +4 | o227.5] (DEN 2-1)
Related: Games of the Day
Related: Facts of the Day
DATE: May 27, 1991
SIGNIFICANCE: The defending 2x champion Pistons walked off without shaking hands after getting swept by the Bulls in the ECF
FULL story on the Pistons walking off against Chicago after getting swept to kickstart the MJ 1990s dynasty https://t.co/bT2JvyHvZN
— Pro Sports Outlook (@PSO_Sports) May 27, 2021
Related: Significant Sports History
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