Led by 28 points from Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets beat the Miami Heat 94-89 on Monday to bring a first NBA title to Mile High City.
With a raucous capacity crowd packed into Ball Arena ready to celebrate, the Nuggets ended a 47-year championship wait by taking the best-of-seven series 4-1.
Once again the Nuggets were led by Jokic, the Serbian big man hitting for a double-double of 28 points and 16 rebounds while Michael Porter Jr. contributed 16 points and 13 rebounds.
The eighth-seeded Heat had defied the odds throughout the postseason, taking out the Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics, but the challenge facing them on Monday was a near impossible one.
Of the 36 teams that have fallen behind 3-1 in an NBA Finals only one, the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers, came back to claim the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.
Making the task even more daunting, Ball Arena has been a virtual fortress for the Nuggets, who were 9-1 at home during the postseason.
That one loss however coming to Miami in Game Two.
(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto. Editing by Peter Rutherford)
