The Jokic Brothers Celebrate The Nuggets Going To The Finals By Tossing Michael Malone Around Like A Child

Allen Berezovsky. Getty Images.

What an incredible run for the Denver Nuggets. Despite being the #1 seed in the West for basically the majority of the year who also happened to employ a 2x MVP and arguably the best player on the planet, they still never really got the respect they deserved. For years the narrative around them was that their deep playoff run in the bubble was a fluke, that they were a regular season team and that's it, and every single day you could find someone trying to invalidate Jokic's MVPs and overall dominance.

They went through ups and downs with their head coach, injuries to franchise pillar-type guys, and they stayed the course. They established a culture that worked for them and screw everyone else. They were patient in their process of finding the right guys who best fit the mold of how they wanted to play and never skipped a step. 

Advertisement

Making their first ever Finals by pulling off their first ever sweep is their reward for that patience. They've looked like the best team in basketball since the playoffs began, and now they are 4 wins away from their first-ever title. 

If you're curious about how much this means to those around the Nuggets, all you have to do is look at the interaction between Michael Malone and the Jokic Brothers. They've been through it all since the beginning together, and they celebrated exactly how you imagined they would

As a reminder, Michael Malone is a grown man. Of course, these are the Jokic Brothers, who as we know are some of the largest and most terrifying humans on the planet when they're angry. But when they're happy? They'll toss around grown men like they're a child. I'm pretty sure my entire bar mitzvah party didn't raise me anywhere close to that high during the Hora, so that alone is wildly impressive. 

It was almost too easy if you ask me. This was certainly not the first rodeo for the Jokic Brothers when it comes to lifting grown humans. I can only imagine what it's going to party with them over the next few days while we wait for the Finals to kick off. They seem like they can probably handle a drink or two.

Back to Malone for a second, what a run for him. The shit he's been able to talk has been fantastic to watch. From clowning on all the Lakers' adjustments to never getting any respect to the disrespect of Nikola Jokic

Advertisement

The way the Nuggets have built this team and made this run, it's basically the anti-NBA in 2023. I think that's what makes them so fun. They aren't really about the bullshit, all they do is dominate. This was the year where both the team and Jokic were tasked with backing up their hype, and it's very clear they've done that and then some. Jokic is at the height of his powers, a fully healthy roster, much-improved depth, and prior playoff pain to help mold them. This is how things should work in the league.

A great story has every chance to get even better. All it takes is just 4 more wins.