For fans of the Nuggets, one of the most memorable moments from the 2023 NBA Finals will always be when Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic tied each other for a 30-point triple-double in a pivotal Game 3 victory.

Eight months later, in their first meeting with the Miami Heat since that series, Murray hurt his right ankle and fell on teammate Aaron Gordon in the second quarter, forcing the Nuggets to play without him for the first half. As Jokic went 6 for 15 from the field, his recent run of extremely productive games was coming to an end.

Instead, for the majority of the game, the reigning champions found life in Michael Porter Jr., the shooter who struggled mightily in his first NBA Finals experience. Porter led the Bulls to a 103-97 victory on Thursday night at Ball Arena with 30 points and 11 rebounds.

With 5:19 left, the Heat was behind 94-81, but Terry Rozier’s clutch shooting helped them catch up. Jimmy Butler scored with 10.7 seconds left to trim the margin to 99-97 following an оffensive foul committed by Jokic in the final minute, which gave the team a four-point lead. After Miami fouled, Michael Malone utilized a timeout to advance the ball because Denver wasn’t yet in the bonus. Jokic doubled the advantage with two foul shots and finished with eighteen points, eleven rebounds, and seven assists in the game. Despite having a fifth straight triple-double, he was unable to enter an elite group of players.

During a crucial period early in the fourth quarter, Aaron Gordon added 16 points, nine rebounds, and three steals as Denver (41-19) looked to extend a lead that had been cut to two points in the previous quarter. Gordon assisted in bringing the score back to 15 prior to the Heat’s late charge.

After returning to Ball Arena, Thomas Bryant was the final of four former Nuggets players from the 2022–23 championship squad to be honored with a pregame ring ceremony.

But Bryant’s reunion took place under peculiar circumstances. Thursday night, he was still serving a three-game suspension handed down by the NBA for his role in a recent altercation between Heat and Pelicans players. Normally, suspended players aren’t even permitted to attend the game from which they are prohibited, but the NBA granted Bryant an exception so he could get his ring. About five minutes prior to the opening tip, he was seen leaving Ball Arena through the loading dock.