Cavs dismantle Celtics, take 2-0 series lead

Nikola Jokic became only the third player ever to average a 30-point triple double in a playoff series as the Denver Nuggets closed out the Phoenix Suns in six games.

Kevin Durant had high praise for Jokic after the game.

“Jokic is an all-time great,” Durant said. “He’s going to go down as one of the all-time great centers to ever touch a basketball.”

Durant, asked if he was surprised by Jokic’s dominance over the course of a best-of-seven series, said he “wasn’t surprised at all” and that “I always knew how great he was.”

“It just means a lot from someone who – the guy is amazing,” Jokic said. “He’s bringing so much attention (from our defense). Just a regular post-up or regular dribble, we were all looking at him. So when someone like that and someone who won it, who was an MVP and scoring champion, best scorer in the NBA says something like that, it means a lot.”

As Jimmy Butler closes in on a return to the Miami Heat from his suspension, trade rumors continue to swirl around him and his team. Butler reportedly still wants to go to the Phoenix Suns, but that continues to be a hard trade puzzle to piece together.

It was also recently reported that Butler’s camp has told the Milwaukee Bucks that he isn’t interested in being traded there. Other league sources have said that Butler hasn’t ruled out a deal to Milwaukee.

It was also reported that Butler’s representatives let the Memphis Grizzlies know that he doesn’t want to be traded there. To this point, no additional reporting has come out to counter that.