Nikola Jokić is the best basketball player on the planet, and he was also, importantly, the NBA's best player this season. But he is also almost certainly going to fall short in MVP voting to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for reasons that were on full display in Game 5.

Nikola Jokić lived up to his nickname on Friday, arriving at the Ball Arena wearing a Joker-inspired purple and green suit before helping the Denver Nuggets to a dramatic, overtime 113-104 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of their playoff series.

Gilgeous-Alexander made big plays down the stretch against the Nuggets. But as always, the Thunder's strength was in numbers.

The owners of the top record in the NBA this season erased a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter of Game 5 to win 112-105 and take a 3-2 lead in their second-round series. Game 6 is scheduled for Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

A surreal silence fell over Paycom Center late Wednesday evening as Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić struggled to find his rhythm in a 149–106 blowout loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Social media exploded with disbelief and criticism,