MINNESOTA - DENVER: Jokic on the Brink of a Brawl! Chaos Erupts on Court Again /VIDEO/

Denver quickly surrendered home-court advantage in this series, but with injuries to Dinwiddie and Edwards, the dynamic of the matchup shifted. It became clear the Nuggets had an opportunity to retaliate, which they did in the last game to cut the deficit to 3-2. However, once the series returned to the Wolves' home court, the Colorado team faltered, finding themselves in a desperate struggle to mount a comeback in the closing stages.

While Denver was without Aaron Gordon and Payton Watson, the Wolves, in addition to the aforementioned duo, also had to play without Dosunmu, a player who had a record-setting performance in one game of this series. Once again, the burden fell squarely on Jokic's shoulders, who ultimately lost his composure and was involved in another incident.

The incident occurred with the Wolves leading 86-80. Jokic, unhappy with the officiating, decided to confront Jalen Clark. He made the initial move, after which there was no turning back. His opponent retaliated, pulling his jersey, and as everyone else rushed in, Denver's star player realized it was best to de-escalate to avoid more severe penalties.

Jokic also faced taunts from the fans throughout the game, who showed him no mercy from the stands. Despite this, he managed to keep his team in contention, narrowing the score to 91-88 with seven minutes left in the game. However, Jokic lacked significant scoring support in the match; apart from Cam Johnson, no one else stepped up. Jamal Murray, at this point in the game, had only eight points, five rebounds, and four assists.

Jokic was visibly exhausted, carrying the team on his back, from battling for position under the basket to bringing the ball upcourt. The situation looked critical when Shannon hit another three-pointer to extend the lead to eight. Johnson responded with a three of his own, keeping Denver in the game with five minutes remaining.