Led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokić, the Denver Nuggets are officially headed to their first NBA Finals in franchise history.
Head coach Michael Malone’s Nuggets completed a western conference finals sweep of the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday and while it still hasn’t sunk in yet, the NBA Finals will soon be played in the state of Colorado.
The Nuggets’ rise, you could say, began in 2015 when Malone and Jokić embarked on their first season with Denver. Interestingly enough, the Nuggets played a preseason game that year at the CU Events Center — then called the Coors Events Center — on Oct. 8.
A little over 5,300 fans showed up to watch the Nuggets “host” none other than Jimmy Butler’s Chicago Bulls. In that game, Butler, who Denver will likely face in the finals, scored six points on 2-for-10 shooting from the field. Jokić, meanwhile, came off the bench and had 14 points, five rebounds and three steals in the Nuggets’ 112-94 win.
Take a look back at that October day in Boulder: