Nikola Jokic turned the final seconds of a blowout into the most talked-about moment of the 2026 NBA Playoffs. The three-time MVP did not simply beat the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 on April 27. He made sure they felt every bit of it. In a series full of tension and bad blood, Jokic saved one last trick for the closing seconds that left the basketball world buzzing.
Denver was already up big, and the game was done. The Timberwolves had emptied their bench and waved the white flag. But Jokic stayed on the court, and with 20 seconds left, he pulled off a move that no one saw coming, and everyone kept replaying it.
The prank that went viral
Jokic’s fake handoff to a Timberwolves rookie became the most viral moment of the 2026 playoffs. With the shot clock winding down and about 20 seconds left in the game, Jokic appeared to hand the ball to Minnesota rookie Joan Beringer. Beringer accepted it, fully expecting a clock-killing gesture.
Then Jokic yanked it straight back, forcing a jump ball that brought the whole arena to its feet. Beringer, a 19-year-old French rookie seeing only his second postseason appearance, was visibly confused. Jokic did not even bother to jump when the ref tossed it up. He just stood there, grinning from ear to ear, as the buzzer sounded.
What made it payback
With 1.3 seconds left and the Timberwolves leading by 14 in Game 4, McDaniels scored an uncontested layup instead of dribbling out the clock. That broke one of basketball’s most understood unwritten rules. Jokic sprinted the length of the floor to confront McDaniels and nearly sparked an all-out brawl.
The NBA reviewed the incident and fined Jokic $50,000 for initiating the confrontation and Julius Randle $35,000 for escalating it. Both players were ejected. Neither was suspended, and both were available for Game 5. Jokic made clear he had zero regrets about going at McDaniels.
A series built on bad blood
This rivalry has been simmering for years and finally boiled over in 2026. McDaniels had been stoking the flames long before the ball-yanking moment. He shoved Jokic after a made basket in Game 1. After Game 2, he publicly called out every Nuggets player as a bad defender.
That triggered loud boos throughout his time at Ball Arena in Game 5, including a “McDaniels sucks” chant that rolled through the arena. This is a real rivalry now. Denver and Minnesota have met in the postseason three times in four years. The Timberwolves hold a 2-1 edge in series wins heading into this 2026 matchup.
Little-known fact: Joan Beringer won the jump ball after Jokic’s fake, and Jokic did not even attempt to jump for it.
Jokic’s game 5 masterclass
After struggling through Games 2 to 4 and shooting just 34% from the field across that stretch, Jokic was completely reborn in Game 5. He finished with 27 points, 16 assists, and 12 rebounds while shooting 9 for 15 from the floor. Jamal Murray added 24 points, and Spencer Jones chipped in 20 off the bench.
Denver outscored Minnesota 37 to 24 in the third quarter and pushed the lead to 27 points before the Wolves made a late run. The Nuggets forced 25 Minnesota turnovers, turning them into 35 points. It was the Nuggets at their best and it arrived at the perfect time.
Minnesota’s injury nightmare
Anthony Edwards hyperextended his left knee in Game 4 and was ruled out indefinitely. Donte DiVincenzo ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the same game and had surgery the next day. That left Minnesota without its top scorer, averaging 28.8 points per game, and its starting backcourt partner in one brutal night.
Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson were also unavailable for Denver. Despite all that, the Nuggets were simply the sharper team from tip-off. Julius Randle led Minnesota with 27 points, but the Wolves could not handle Denver’s pace or ball movement throughout the game.
Little-known fact: Only 13 teams in NBA history have ever come back from a 3-1 series deficit to win. The Nuggets themselves did it twice during the 2020 bubble, the only team ever to pull it off back-to-back in the same postseason.
McDaniels’ bold response
Despite being serenaded with boos all night and absorbing the crowd’s full hostility, McDaniels posted just 13 points in Game 5. But after the final buzzer, he walked out with confidence. He told reporters he loved every second of the hostile atmosphere in Denver and guaranteed that the Timberwolves would close out the series in Game 6 at home.
That guarantee set up Thursday’s Game 6 at Target Center in Minneapolis as one of the most anticipated games of the postseason. A Minnesota win ends Denver’s season. A Denver win sends it to a Game 7 back at Ball Arena, where Jokic and the Nuggets have consistently thrived.
What comes next
Minnesota still leads 3-2 and will host Game 6 without Edwards and DiVincenzo, with McDaniels carrying the villain role on his own. Denver needs back-to-back wins to advance. Denver would become just the 14th team of 299 to ever erase a 3-1 deficit in the NBA playoffs if they pull it off.
The basketball stakes are enormous. But after everything that happened in Games 4 and 5, the personal stakes might be even higher. Jokic versus McDaniels. Payback versus revenge. A rivalry that started as a playoff footnote has become one of the most compelling stories in the league.
TL;DR
- Jokic faked a handoff to Timberwolves rookie Joan Beringer in the final 20 seconds of Game 5 as a troll move.
- The prank was payback for Jaden McDaniels scoring a garbage-time layup in Game 4, which got Jokic fined $50,000.
- Denver won Game 5 by 125-113 with Jokic posting 27 points, 16 assists, and 12 rebounds.
- Jokic tied Russell Westbrook’s record with his 221st career triple-double (regular season and playoffs combined).
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This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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