Denver Nuggets, Nikola Jokic go all-out during championship parade
Just a few days after capturing their first NBA title in their 47-year history, the Denver Nuggets took to the streets to celebrate with a boisterous parade through the Mile High City in front of hundreds of thousands of cheering fans.
The Nuggets were able to hold off the feisty Miami Heat in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday after a physical back-and-forth battle for a 94-89 series-ending win in front of a rowdy home crowd. Superstar center Nikola Jokić, who finished the night with 28 points — on 12-for-16 shooting — to go along with 16 rebounds, was named NBA Finals MVP.
The parade route was surrounded by an estimated half a million people attending the festivities, which included live music, highlight reels of Denver's championship season and live video from the parade route.
The city of Denver is no stranger to going all-out for sports celebrations, having just practiced in 2022 with the NHL's Colorado Avalanche after their Stanley Cup win.
The vibes appeared to be unmatched Thursday, as the Denver faithful were clearly having a great time while celebrating with their championship squad.
The day was highlighted by one lucky fan caught and chugged a beer thrown to him by rookie guard Christian Braun, who had plenty of viral moments throughout the day.
"As soon as he tossed me that brewski, I already knew that I had to do what I had to do," the fan said. "There's plenty of history being made today, and I guess I'm part two of it."
Meanwhile, Nikola Jokić, who previously stated he wouldn't be participating in the parade and would be "going home," was spotted having a great time and celebrating with his daughter.
As any good father would, Jokic shielded his daughter from the flying champagne.
Elsewhere, veteran Kentavious Caldwell-Pope showed his Nuggets teammates how to properly celebrate a title run by chugging beer with the rowdy Denver crowd and flawlessly executing the Stone Cold Beer Smash.
Nuggets guards Jamal Murray and Bruce Brown were also seen getting in on the action, with Murray telling the camera "actions speak louder than words." Murray also reminds everyone that he accomplished this feat after recovering from a torn ACL just over two years ago, causing him to miss the entire 2021-22 season.
A shirtless Brown was spotted taking a shot with an excited fan.
Even Nuggets coach Michael Malone got in on the fun, sporting a shirt saying "you put that in your pipe, you smoke it," a reference to his quote that made headlines after Game 1 of the Nuggets series with the Los Angeles Lakers.