Jusuf Nurkic had something to get off his chest. And boy, did he ever.
The Trail Blazers center played his first game against the Nuggets on Monday since he was shipped from Denver to Portland at the NBA trade deadline. Nurkic gave the Nuggets a full dose of what they were missing, going off for a career-high 33 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks in a 122-113 Blazers win.
Classic revenge game, right?
It turns out Nurkic was just getting started. In his postgame interview on Portland TV, the Bosnian big man dropped the mic with a wicked burn of the Nuggets:
“When I came here, I said we want to be a playoff team,” Nurkic said. “We’re there (right now), and I wish those guys a happy summer.”
What makes Nurkic’s trash talk even greater is that it could be true. Portland moved a full game ahead of Denver for the Western Conference’s eighth playoff spot with the win and now owns the season tiebreaker. The Blazers also play six of their last eight games at home while the Nuggets are at home for just two of their remaining eight games, so Nurkic has a very good chance of reaching the postseason at his old club’s expense.
The only thing better than solid trash talk is backing it up, and Nurkic certainly checked both boxes Tuesday.
Thumbnail photo via Craig Mitchelldyer/USA TODAY Sports Images
