Watch: “Harden sucks” chants ring out at Ball Arena as Nuggets pummel Clippers
The Denver Nuggets delivered a commanding performance in Game 5 of their first-round series against the LA Clippers on Tuesday, cruising to a 131-115 win to go up 3-2 in the matchup. As the team turned up the intensity, the Ball Arena crowd matched the energy, creating a hostile environment for the visiting Clippers.
One of the main targets of the raucous fans? James Harden. With the Nuggets holding a 16-point lead at the start of the fourth, the crowd broke out in a thunderous chant: “Harden sucks!”
For Harden, the night unraveled fast. He shot just 3-of-9 from the field, missed both of his 3-point attempts and committed four turnovers. He ended the night with a series-low 11 points, though he chipped in eight rebounds and five assists.
It was the first game in the series where Harden failed to reach 15 points. After opening the playoffs with 32 points, he’s since scored 18, 20, 15 and now 11.
Ivica Zubac was the standout for the Clippers, finishing with 27 points and five boards. Kawhi Leonard came close to a triple-double with 20 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds.
But the spotlight belonged to Jamal Murray. The Nuggets guard erupted for 43 points on 65.4% shooting, adding seven assists, five rebounds and three steals — all while Nikola Jokic had a quiet scoring night, posting just 13 points (his lowest this series) on 4-of-13 shooting, though he still notched 12 assists and 10 rebounds.
Aaron Gordon chipped in 23 points, while Russell Westbrook added 21 off the bench for Denver.
Wild stat shows how inconsequential James Harden was in Game 5
James Harden’s Game 5 showing was his worst of this postseason, and according to ESPN Stats & Info, the Clippers averaged a dismal 0.72 points per play across the 35 offensive possessions Harden was part of — both marks being his lowest of the series.
Beyond his poor scoring night — much of it due to being blanketed by Nuggets defender Christian Braun, who had 11 points and 12 rebounds — Harden also struggled with ball control, logging four turnovers to five assists, and recording a team-worst minus-16 in 35 minutes.
Following the loss, Harden’s playoff averages dropped to 19.2 points, 8.6 assists and 5.4 rebounds per game, while shooting 43.8% overall and 37.5% from 3.
