At that point, the score was 28–26, with the Thunder trailing by two.
Oklahoma then subbed in Batum, Little Jordan, and Reddish for Westbrook, Bane, and Davis.
The lineup on the floor became Chen Xi, Reddish, Green, Batum, and Little Jordan.
It was a lineup Donovan rarely used.
They were big across the board, reasonably mobile, and all solid defenders.
Their only weakness was that Uncle, as he was now, would probably struggle to defend away from the basket...
At the same time, Donovan put Chen Xi at point guard, which was something of an experimental move.
At least in team practices, this lineup had looked very effective.
Whether it could hold up in the high-intensity Playoffs, though, still depended on how the players performed...
Meanwhile, the Nuggets were making some adjustments of their own.
Monte Morris and Jalen Green came on in succession, replacing Murray and Porter.
As the team's undisputed centerpiece, Jokic, like Doncic, was tied to Chen Xi's rotation and had played the entire first quarter.
Though Jokic's regular rotation had him playing the entire first quarter anyway~~
After both teams adjusted their lineups, play resumed shortly afterward.
Back on the floor, the Nuggets still had possession to start.
Monte Morris brought the ball up the court and passed it to Jokic as his first option.
Jokic took a dribble toward the top of the key, then handed the ball off to Aaron Gordon.
Gordon used the screen to drive straight down the middle, then quickly passed the ball out when the defense collapsed on him.
On the wing, Jalen Green caught the ball, gave a quick fake, then drove into the paint and tried to finish at the rim.
But Uncle had recovered in time to swat the shot away, and it wouldn't go in.
Chen