Why the Matchup from Donner against Nuggets is good for the NBA

With one of the Western Conference, one of the semi -finals, the Thunder, which the Nuggets meet, seems to be a good look for the NBA. We have seen how dominant the Thunder of Oklahoma City can be and how the denver nuggets can react to adversity. Since this showdown between two MVPs will finally collide, fans will enjoy an intensive playoff conflict. However, the NBA will be the ultimate winner for this. There are a lot of hype with this series that will start on Monday.

Why the Matchup from Donner against Nuggets is good for the NBA

Donner against Nuggets: A Matchup for the centuries

OKC and Denver only met once in the playoffs in the era of the franchise franchise in Oklahoma City. The last time they played each other, the Thunder defeated the Nuggets in the first round in 2011 with 4: 1. However, the two teams are much different than before, and both are reasonable competitors, especially with Denver, who won a title in 2023.

As both teams are expected to increase it, this series will make a trip. We will see an MVP VS MVP showdown for the first time that the two best candidates for the award have been confronted in a series since 2017. Russell Westbrook (MVP 2016-17) fought against James Harden (2016-17 MVP second place), the latter won in the first round with Houston. Now it will be a historical struggle between the probable 2024-25 MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.

If the excitement begins to brew, some action lines will develop in this series. Each of these will make the series more exciting, and it is something that fans don't want to miss.

Westbrook homecoming

For the first time in his career, Russell Westbrook will play against his first team, The Thunder, in the playoffs. Since his trade in 2019, Westbrook has not played the thunder in a series with seven games. Whenever he plays in the Paycom Center, the amount has shown him love. So expect that this is a bitter -sweet feeling for OKC fans when you try to defeat your former franchise player.

Russell Westbrook via OKC:

“It's like at home for me. I always love for everyone. The people. The fans. I know that it is mutually.

But they also know the reason why they love me because I start at a high level and that will do that every evening. “pic.twitter.com/0eevh57gx3

– Brandon Rahbar (@brandonrahbar) May 4, 2025

Westbrook was Pure Brillanz in victory 7 against the Los Angeles Clippers. The beast was unleashed when he scored 16 points from the field at 5: 9 shootout, including five rebounds, five assists and five steals. He comes from the bank, which gives Denver an energy boost as soon as he enters the game.

The last time Westbrook played in OKC on March 10, he scored 16 points (6-10 shooting) to reach seven templates and five rebounds. The Denver Guard scores an average of 13.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists in four games compared to OKC this season.

The MVP showdown

Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks are output, so the spotlight will be on the thunder against nuggets. A less MVP candidate who can be seen means that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander attracts the attention of the media that he deserves. Of course, the pressure on Jokic is to keep the Denver squad alive in this central series.

SGA and Jokic were in the MVP race for most of the 2024-25 NBA season in the MVP race. All Thunder/Nugget games this year were fun to see, especially since they ended 2-2. It is difficult to predict what this series will look like in seven games. However, one can say that the MVPs will definitely shine brightly.

Jokic vs. Shai 🥶

The MVP candidates will come together in the conference -semi -final! pic.twitter.com/uypxejvyqp

– Sportscenter (@sportscenter) May 4, 2025

Jokic played seven games in the opening round and scored an average of 24.0 points, 11.6 rebounds and 10.1 assists at 50%. On the other hand, SGA did not always look like him in four games, but an average of 27.8 points, 6.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds at 40.2% shooting. The thunder was still able to sweep the Memphis grizzlies.

Large series for the NBA

With the TON -VS -Nuggets series playing on national television, this is really good for the NBA, since the expected numbers for fan ads should be quite high because they want to set themselves to see the two best MVP candidate. When this series goes to seven games, the NBA fans will definitely switch on and the NBA wins with this type of spectacle.

Photo loan: © Alonzo Adams-Mimagn pictures