The Denver Nuggets have arrived at the Intuit Dome with a 3-2 lead to close out their series against the Los Angeles Clippers.
The sensational Jamal Murray had 43 points and ran riot on the Clippers in Game 5. It’s been some time since fans saw Murray playing at a high level, and as the general saying goes, ‘if Murray performs, the Clippers could win the title.’
Meanwhile, the Clippers came to the game in a win-or-go-home situation after taking the series lead. Kawhi Leonard, who has averaged 25.2 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in this series, is proving to be the difference for the Clippers.
However, Harden’s performance could be the difference, as he scored just 11 points in Game 5. Therefore, we dig deep into the player performances and game recap for Game 6 of this intriguing series.
Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Clippers Box Score
| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nuggets | 28 | 29 | 22 | 26 | 105 |
| Clippers | 25 | 33 | 32 | 21 | 111 |
Nuggets’ Player Stats
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Porter Jr. | 24:24 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2/5 | 1/2 |
| Aaron Gordan | 40:50 | 19 | 5 | 1 | 9/16 | 1/6 |
| Nikola Jokić | 41:36 | 25 | 7 | 8 | 11/22 | 2/4 |
| Christian Braun | 40:19 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 5/7 | 2/4 |
| Jamal Murray | 44:28 | 21 | 8 | 8 | 9/19 | 2/6 |
| Russell Westbrook | 34:43 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 5/10 | 2/4 |
| Peyton Watson | 10:42 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3/5 | 1/1 |
| DeAndre Jordan | 02:58 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 |
| Jalen Pickett | DNP | |||||
| Julian Strawther | DNP | |||||
| Hunter Tyson | DNP | |||||
| Zeke Nnaji | DNP | |||||
| Vlatko Čančar | DNP | |||||
| DaRon Holmes II | DNP | |||||
| Dario Šarić | DNP |
Clippers’ Player Stats
| Player | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG | 3PT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norman Powell | 38:56 | 24 | 3 | 1 | 9/15 | 2/6 |
| Kawhi Leonard | 39:27 | 27 | 10 | 5 | 11/22 | 2/8 |
| Ivica Zubac | 33:06 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 5/6 | 0/0 |
| Kris Dunn | 10:14 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1/4 | 0/3 |
| James Harden | 46:35 | 28 | 6 | 8 | 10/20 | 3/8 |
| Bogdan Bogdanović | 19:28 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2/6 | 1/3 |
| Nicolas Batum | 34:22 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| Derrick Jones Jr. | 17:52 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3/8 | 2/6 |
| Ben Simmons | DNP | |||||
| Kobe Brown | DNP | |||||
| Cam Christie | DNP | |||||
| Drew Eubanks | DNP | |||||
| Jordan Miller | DNP | |||||
| Patty Mills | DNP | |||||
| Amir Coffey | DNP |
Nuggets vs. Clippers: Game Recap
The game started strong, with both teams going against each other in the first quarter. The two teams traded buckets, and the Nuggets and Clippers looked set for a long night.
Like the last game, Murray started well, scoring nine points to continue his brilliant form. Nikola Jokić carried on in his usual self by laying out assists for his teammates and scoring inside the paint.
For the Clippers, Norman Powell caught fire and scored six points. Nothing separated the two teams in the first quarter, and they competed in a tight battle. The Nuggets then went on a two-minute 10-2 run and extended the lead to 27-20.
The first quarter ended with a 28-25 scoreline in favor of the Nuggets, as Murray finished the quarter with 12 points.
The second quarter started strongly for the Clippers, with Harden scoring two back-to-back buckets to give them a slight 33-30 lead. Unlike Game 5, Harden looked like he got his shooting boots on with 12 points.
Another baseline drive resulting into a Kawhi dunk, Jokic stays too long in teh PnR, Batum gets it on the pop drives the clseout, Russ rotates over Gordon has to zone up and Kawhi makes a GREAT cut from slot for the dunk. pic.twitter.com/fPVQUU9TFe
— Mo Dakhil (@MoDakhil_NBA) May 2, 2025
At 8:11 in the second quarter, Leonard dunked from Nicolas Batum’s assist as the Intuit Dome exploded. Right after that, the Nuggets had their fifth turnover, with the Clippers extending their lead to five points.
At 6:46, Batum had another sensational defensive play with a block on Jokić, earning his 8th block of this series.
At minute 5:14, Harden drained another three-pointer to take his tally to 18 points and give the Clippers a 46-39 lead. Jokić then came up with sensational drives to the baskets and dominated the paint to take his tally to 20 points in the first half.
The game remained tight at halftime, with the Clippers holding a narrow 58-57 lead. Harden turned up this time with 21 points.
The third quarter favored the Clippers, with Leonard coming up with the goods. The team had an 8-0 run at the start and extend their lead to 66-59. Yet, the Nuggets came back with a good mid-range jumper from Murray at minute 8:05 to cut the lead to 68-66.
The game exploded into life when Powell scored an emphatic dunk at 6:14 after Ivica Zubac blocked Jokić before Powell drained the dunk.
Zubac with a block on Jokic ➡️ NORM 💥
(via @NBA)pic.twitter.com/koHpXYuwDX
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) May 2, 2025
The Clippers’ defense got fired up in Game 6 after restricting the Nuggets to nine points at 4:17. At 3:56, they led the game 80-66, showing the fight they needed to stay in the series.
The Nuggets had zero points in 4:10 minutes, and the team struggled. On the other hand, Powell had 11 points in the third quarter, taking his tally to 19 points. Thus, at the end of the third quarter, the Clippers were up 11 and outscored the Nuggets in the third quarter by 10 points with a scoreline of 90-79.
The Clippers were up by 14 points, with Harden knocking down five three-pointers in five attempts. The Clippers led the game by a scoreline of 102-88 at minute 7:58.
James Harden cashes in from deep 👌
He’s got 28 on the night as the Clippers lead in the 4Q!
LAC seeking a Game 7 on TNT 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Opt9JfFrjl
— NBA (@NBA) May 2, 2025
Similarly, the Nuggets missed some easy shots, with Russell Westbrook missing an easy dunk, and Peyton Watson did the same by missing an easy layup.
Zubac continued his impressive defense inside the paint, stopping Jokić from getting easy points. But the Nuggets came back fast, with Murray and Aaron Gordon scoring quick buckets to reduce the deficit to six points. They had an 11-2 run to cut the Clippers’ lead short.
But at minute 2:12, Westbrook botched another layup to cut the lead to four points. Soon after, Powell scored his third three-pointer from the corner to extend the lead again, only for Zubac to shut down Jokić again in a minute of intense play on the floor.
The blocks kept coming for the Clippers as Batum blocked Christian Braun, who was looking for another easy layup. Ultimately, the Clippers closed the game with eight blocks, which became the difference.
The final score favored the Clippers 111-105 despite the Nuggets looking to mount a comeback for the ages. We head to Game 7 to find the winner of this sensational playoff series.
