DENVER — Congratulations, Denver Nuggets.
You just beat the Los Angeles Clippers in the hardest-contested series of the first round of the playoffs behind a team effort that salvaged a season that not long ago appeared in the dumps.
Your reward? A date with the 68-win Oklahoma City Thunder and MVP finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Ahem, make that the 72-win Oklahoma City Thunder.
"It feels good, but I also know that we’re flying to OKC tomorrow," Nuggets coach David Adelman said after Saturday's win at Denver's Ball Arena. "This was not the championship.