While there is no doubt that Portland Trail Blazers guard Norman Powell was locked in to the game against the Denver Nuggets, Jusuf Nurkic also made key contributions by stifling Nikola Jokic. Aaron Fentress of the Oregonian details how the two players made the difference in the win. For Powell, it was a matter of attitude.
“I told myself, early on when I woke up and going through warm-ups before the tipoff, that we were not going to lose this game,” Powell said.
Powell was so focused, he didn’t notice the fans chanting his name until his teammates also started chanting.