How 'Big Game Lu' Dort powered OKC Thunder rally past Denver Nuggets into 3-2 series lead
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Lu Dort snarled and stomped. He bowed his arms and bobbed his head.
We'd seen this version of him. The mild-mannered Montrealan had morphed into Big Game Lu, a scary sight if you're on the opposite sideline.
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Benched in the fourth quarter of Game 4, Dort traded bricks for buckets in the biggest moments of Game 5. His three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter catalyzed the Thunder's 112-105 win against the Nuggets on Tuesday night in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder leads the series 3-2 with a chance to close things out Thursday night in Denver.
'It's clear as day we wouldn't have been able to win tonight if Lu doesn't make those shots,' said Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who hit a huge fourth-quarter 3-pointer of his own.
SGA wasn't the only one who summarized the game so succinctly.
'It won us the game for real,' said Jalen Williams, who hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with just over a minute left.
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CARLSON: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC Thunder 'flex the muscles' to stun Denver Nuggets in Game 5
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) celebrates after making a 3-pointer during Game 5 of the NBA playoff series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
The Thunder wasn't dead before Dort's barrage, but the building was tight. OKC trailed by nine points with nine minutes to play.
Two minutes and three Dort triples later, Denver's lead was down to two.
'Shout out to the crowd,' Dort said. 'The crowd got a lot of emotion out of me tonight.'
Did it ever.
Even when he was done making 3s, Dort didn't stop making winning plays. He dove into the Nuggets' bench to save a ball from going out of bounds. Dort's effort led to a Chet Holmgren layup that tied the game and forced another Denver timeout.
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You knew Daigneault was going to go back to Dort even after benching him amid a 2-of-10 shooting night in Game 4. Daigneault is the biggest Dort defender of all.
'I don't bet against Lu,' Daigneault said. 'It's that simple.'
Daigneault was a Thunder assistant when a rookie Dort scored 30 points in a Game 7 loss to the Rockets in the bubble.
That's back before Dort learned how to shoot. But even then it was evident that he had a knack for making timely, towering 3-pointers.
'There's just a special thing about him,' Daigneault said. 'He's always going to stand back up. He's not perfect, but he's always going to respond and he's always going to compete.'
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Heck, maybe the stakes of Game 4 in Denver — which the Thunder won — weren't high enough for Dort. Only half-joking.
They don't call him Big Game Lu for nothin'.
Joe Mussatto is a sports columnist for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Joe? Email him at jmussatto@oklahoman.com . Support Joe's work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com .
More: OKC Thunder stuns Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets with wild Game 5 comeback | 5 takeaways
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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: NBA Playoffs: Lu Dort powers OKC Thunder to 3-2 series lead vs Nuggets
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