Holiday's Fourth-Quarter Bomb Sinks Denver, Portland Wins 118-110
Jrue Holiday buried a 26-foot three-pointer with 8:49 left in the fourth quarter that swung Denver's win probability from 60% to 28% — a 32-point collapse in a single shot. Portland walked out of Denver with a 118-110 victory, powered by a five-man effort that Denver's star-heavy roster simply couldn't match.
Denver looked like the team in control for most of the first half. Jamal Murray was relentless from the opening tip — a driving layup off a Nikola Jokic feed, a tip shot, then three free throws in quick succession had Denver out to an early lead. Jokic piled on with back-to-back floaters in the paint to push it to 15-8, and by the end of the first quarter, Denver led 31-19 after Trevon Brazile converted a running dunk at the buzzer. Portland chipped away in the second — Damian Lillard hit a 26-foot three early in the quarter, then converted three free throws to pull within single digits, and Deni Avdija converted an and-one to make it 34-27 — but Denver held the lead into the break.
The story of the night, though, appears to be Portland's collective depth overwhelming Denver's two-man engine. Avdija finished with 28 points and 5 assists. Donovan Clingan was a force — 17 points, 18 rebounds, and 4 blocks, the kind of stat line that changes a game's physical texture entirely. Jrue Holiday ran the offense with 10 assists, 8 rebounds, and 17 points. Lillard added 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists. Murray's 35 points and Jokic's 26-point, 9-rebound, 8-assist, 4-steal night were individually brilliant — but Denver couldn't find a third or fourth contributor to match Portland's wave.
The decisive moment came in the fourth quarter. With Denver still holding a 60% win probability at 8:49, Holiday caught a pass from Chris Youngblood and drained a 26-foot three. Just like that, Denver's win probability cratered to 28% — a 32-point swing on one possession. That shot looks, in retrospect, like the moment Denver's resistance broke. Portland closed it out 118-110, and the final margin flatters Denver a little. Five Portland players scored 17 or more points; Denver got heroics from Murray and Jokic and not nearly enough from anyone else. Denver's coaching staff sat Zeke Nnaji, DaRon Holmes II, and three others as coach's decisions, which may reflect roster management — but on a night when Portland had answers at every position, the depth gap was glaring.