Christian Braun was key for the Nuggets in Game 3. The 22-year-old Braun averaged 4.7 points in 15.5 minutes over 76 regular-season appearances, emerging as one of the valuable role players complementing the team’s two bona fide stars, Jokic and Murray. It was really fun to watch a young man step up like the way Christian did.” “Tonight, man, I could just feel the confidence kind of oozing out of him, the physical, aggressive drives, making plays for guys against their zone. “If you look around, there’s not many rookies playing meaningful minutes in the NBA this time of year, and it speaks to Christian’s confidence. He’s been in the rotation throughout these 18 playoff games now,” Denver coach Michael Malone said. “Christian has proved himself all year long, and he was in the rotation end of season. The 6-foot-7 wing appears to be the latest shrewd find by the Denver front office following Jokic as a second-round selection in 2014, Murray (seventh overall in 2016) and Michael Porter Jr, who was grabbed with the 14th selection amid injury concerns in 2018. Nuggets rookie Christian Braun makes statement in dominant Game 3 outing APīraun (pronounced Brown) was the Nuggets’ first-round selection (21st overall) last June, barely two months after winning the NCAA Tournament with the Jayhawks. ” Christian Braun, who scored 15 points in Game 3, goes up for a layup during the Nuggets’ win. He won us the game, and he was really good. “Even when he make a mistake, it’s an aggressive mistake, so you cannot be mad at him. “He’s a winner, and he won us the game, with energy, just the focus, the mindset. I told him, ‘You won us the game,’ Jokic said after posting his 10th triple-double of these playoffs with 32 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists. On the night when Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray became the first teammates in the history of the NBA - let alone in the Finals - to each record a 30-point triple-double, the two-time league MVP told Christian Braun that the rookie won Game 3 for the Nuggets.īraun, seeking to follow up his national championship at Kansas in 2022 with an NBA title in his initial professional season, nailed seven of eight shots and scored a personal playoff-high 15 points in 19 minutes off the bench as the Nuggets grabbed a 2-1 series lead over the Heat on Wednesday night in Miami. Nuggets coach trolls LeBron with retirement gagĬonor McGregor speaks out after sending NBA mascot to hospital Nikola Jokic’s wife hit with beer can at Nuggets parade “I’ve kind of been here before.Jimmy Butler ‘hella proud’ of Heat with rumors spreading after NBA Finals run “Obviously, the Final Four kind of helped me with that,” Braun said. He’s never afraid of the moment, which you have to appreciate for such a young kid.” He’s gone out there and defended, rebounded, ran the floor, moved without it. “The last two months of the year he was a rotational player for the No. Most young kids, they get in a situation or environment like that, they’re going to be a little bit over their head, and he wasn’t.”īraun’s attitude is that if he’s only going to get minutes here and there, then he’s going to hustle from the second he checks in to the moment he’s summoned back to the bench. “For a young player playing against the defending world champions on the road, he wasn’t afraid,” Malone said. Malone said he knew Braun’s addition was going to be big when the 6-7 shooting guard whose last name is pronounced “Brown,” helped Denver to a 128-123 win at Golden State in the second game of the season with Murray in street clothes as he worked his way back from a torn ACL. It’s kind of staying true to form for Christian Brawn.” “The guy has won at every level, and here he is in the NBA Finals. “All year long the one thing I’ve talked about with Christian is that he’s a winner,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope struggled again. With Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray making history with the first dual triple-double in the NBA Finals, Braun scored 15 points in 19 minutes on a night starters Michael Porter Jr. He’s in the right place at the right time, and he’s been doing that all year.”īraun has a chance to become just the fifth player in NBA history to win an NBA title a year after winning the NCAA championship, joining Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, Henry Bibby and Billy Thompson.īraun gave the Nuggets a much-needed lift in Denver’s Game 3 rout of the Heat. I say that because he’s always in the right spot. “That’s a rare rookie right here,” Aaron Gordon said. The 21st pick in the draft last summer, Braun has made the most of his minutes off the bench, sinking 10 of 12 shots, grabbing a half dozen rebounds and collecting four steals against the Miami Heat while giving teammates an extended breather. DENVER (AP) - Denver Nuggets rookie Christian Braun is showing that the NBA Finals is not too big of a stage for him.
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