Nikola Jokic, Nuggets Eliminate Blazers in Game 6 Despite Damian Lillard's 28

In a year of injuries, Nikola Jokic was the NBA's iron man, staying healthy as competitors dropped like flies to emerge as the runaway MVP favorite. When the injury bug bit his team, taking out co-star Jamal Murray, it would have been understandable if the Nuggets folded.

They entered Round 1 as underdogs to the Portland Trail Blazers and dropped Game 1 at home, with panic buttons being smashed in metropolitan Denver. 

Instead, Jokic rallied what was left of the Nuggets roster around him, righted the ship and showed why he's the game's best center.

Jokic poured in 36 points, eight rebounds and six assists and Michael Porter Jr. added 26 points, leading the Nuggets to a 126-115 win over the Blazers in Game 6 to complete a 4-2 victory in their first-round series.

Denver trailed by as many as 14 points in the second half as it looked like Portland would force a Game 7. But the Blazers went ice cold in the fourth quarter while Jokic and Monte Morris led a come-from-behind rally. The Nuggets soared to a fourth-quarter lead that stretched as far as 11 points.

Damian Lillard, fresh off a sensational 55-point effort, finished with 28 points and 13 assists. CJ McCollum had 21 points but continued to struggle shooting, finishing 9-of-21 from the field.

Notable Stats

Nuggets

C Nikola Jokic: 36 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists
F Michael Porter Jr.: 25 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists
G Monte Morris: 22 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists

Blazers

G Damian Lillard: 28 points, 4 rebounds, 13 assists
G CJ McCollum: 21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists

It's Time to Blow Things Up in Portland

This isn't just a matter of firing Terry Stotts, whose nine-year tenure in Portland will probably be over by Monday. It's time to explore what Damian Lillard's future looks like in Portland.

To be clear: This should 100 percent be a Dame call. He's cemented his franchise legend status. If he wants to stay and try to smash his fist against the glass ceiling of perpetual first-round exits, then he's earned that right. The Blazers may have to wait a decade for a player of Lillard's caliber to come to Portland—and perhaps a lifetime for one with Dame's sense of loyalty.

That loyalty has come at a cost.

Lillard turns 31 in a month. The window on his prime isn't closed, but it's closing. He's in the midst of a Hall of Fame career, loyal to a team stuck in neutral teetering toward the cliff. It could easily be said that Lillard is his generation's Kevin Garnett, a fiercely proud superstar who held on in Minnesota well beyond the point he should have requested a trade.

The Blazers have no obvious path at getting better. Firing Stotts will get a new voice but won't change the flawed roster composition. Portland may and likely will consider moving McCollum, but he is not the type of player who will bring back the level of talent the Blazers need to take the next step. If anything, trading McCollum might cause a step backward.

The most prudent solution for Lillard's career is pressing the nuclear button and working together with the Blazers on a trade that's mutually beneficial. If Lillard doesn't take that step, we're likely watching another Blazers team waste another generational performance from Lillard at its time next year. 

Nuggets Didn't Miss Murray in RD1, but They Will

The West is wide open. The Lakers are on the brink of an injury-riddled elimination. Luka Doncic is determined to single-handedly lead the Mavericks over the Clippers. 

If the series hold, the final four teams in the West will feature three playoff unprovens (Dallas, Utah and Phoenix) and last year's conference runner-up, Denver.

A fully healthy version of the Nuggets would be the favorite to make it out of the West—and with good reason. They have arguably the best player remaining in Jokic, a deep, versatile roster and three players (Jokic, Murray and Porter) who can drop 25 on any given night.

One problem: Murray's not coming through that door. 

These Nuggets needed nightly brilliance from Jokic, along with 50 points from Monte Morris in Games 5 and 6, to survive a deeply flawed Portland team. Murray was a breakout bubble superstar in last year's playoffs, averaging 26.5 points and giving Jokic much-needed breaks from running the offense.

The Nuggets can't afford to give Jokic breaks without Murray when the margin slims. Porter's too inconsistent to be relied upon, and good games from Morris and Austin Rivers are more happy accidents than anything that can be expected.

For all the talk we'll hear about injuries to LeBron James and Anthony Davis altering the playoff outlook—and for good reason—it may be Murray's that winds up being the most pivotal.