It is an indisputable fact that Doug McDermott TOOK OVER this game with ABSOLUTE FURY. He scored eighteen of his twenty-four points in the fourth quarter to turn a seven-point deficit into a comfortable eight-point victory for the Pace Cars of Indianapolis. I could hear Nuggets fans all the way in Colorado collectively yelling at their TV screens as shot after shot swished through the net for the one who has rightfully earned the nickname “Dougie McBuckets”. The Nuggets players on the floor, meanwhile, were visibly deflated whenever McBuckets somehow snuck himself open to score another McBucket.
McDermott also played a crucial role in getting Domantas Sabonis his first triple-double. The best teammates are the ones who shoot it as soon as you pass it to them, and McDermott, always the bestest most awesomest teammate, ensured that Sabonis would make it to ten assists with his quick trigger. I don’t have access to the Pacers’ locker room, but you can bet that there were a lot of butt-slaps and Gatorade baths in there after the game was over.
I’ve always felt that McDermott would be capable of putting up twenty points on a regular basis if he was simply allowed to do so. Maybe this is the start of an emergence for him. Just trade Jeremy Lamb somewhere far away so that he can’t take McDermott’s minutes anymore. The Bucks will gladly give up crucial championship pieces like Thon Maker and Greivis Vasquez in order to absorb Jeremy Lamb’s contract.