At their peak, the Nuggets have devastating potential. Against the Thunder on Saturday night, they unleashed everything in their arsenal.
Behind Nikola Jokic’s eighth triple-double of the season, the Nuggets blistered the Thunder 126-96 to improve to 18-15 on the season. Now 9-8 on the road, the Nuggets will take their traveling party to Chicago on Monday for the second stop of a four-game road trip.
“I felt tonight was like Denver Nugget basketball,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “The ball was moving, bodies were moving. We played for each other, and I talked to our team about that this morning. We have to get back to being a team that is hard to guard.”
It all began with Jokic, who carved apart Oklahoma City’s rebuilding roster, registering 19 points, 13 assists and 11 rebounds. Jokic’s vision controlled the game. It also set the tone for Denver’s 30 assists on the evening.
“I don’t know, do I dominate with (my passing)?” Jokic said. “The word dominate, a couple people really dominate the game. … Do I dominate with the passing? I don’t think so.”
Despite his humility, the rest of the NBA would strongly disagree.
He was flanked by Jamal Murry, whose 26 points were a team-high, and Michael Porter Jr., who logged his third consecutive double-double. Porter finished with 20 points, five 3-pointers and 10 rebounds.
All five starters finished with a plus/minus of at least +27. And the rout was so thorough, it even allowed Nuggets rookie Greg Whittington to make his NBA debut.
The Nuggets were merciless in the third quarter. Rather than relent, settling for long jumpers that could potentially leave the door open for a Thunder comeback, Denver continued attacking. Their offense, revolving around Jokic, hummed with cuts and movement. If it wasn’t Jokic and Murray’s patented two-man game, then it was Denver’s sensational centerpiece finding creases in the Thunder defense that no one else could see.
With nine points and four assists in the quarter alone, Jokic paced the 34-point effort in the third. Even Will Barton, who struggled mightily Thursday in the loss to Washington, rebounded. His 15-point, six-rebound, five assist night was one of his most complete games of the season. His effort, along with nearly every other Denver rotation player, gave the Nuggets a 99-69 lead heading into the fourth.
Entering Saturday just two games above .500, Malone conceded there were plenty of valid criticisms about his team nearing the halfway mark.
“The transition defense is nowhere close to where it needs to be, and a lot of that obviously has to do with our offense and the turnovers that fuel teams in transition,” Malone said. “What’s made it really hard … obviously injuries are a part of it, but we’ve had such a disjointed season.
“First four games no JaMychal Green, and then the next 10 games no Michael Porter, and then you lose Gary (Harris), then you lose Paul (Millsap), then you lose PJ (Dozier), then you lose JaMychal again. … Those are no excuses, that’s just the reality of our situation. We have to improve in every area to be very honest.”
The return of Dozier helped against the Thunder, a team with good backcourt size and a penchant for attacking the driving lanes. Dozier had missed the last 15 games with a hamstring injury suffered late in January. Saturday was a good reminder of his versatile defense, along with his downhill, probing offense.
Following the disappointment of Thursday’s loss to Washington, the Nuggets played a nearly flawless first half Saturday night. Their defense was engaged from the outset, including containment, contests and effort, while their offense churned out a 68% shooting half.
Denver carried a 65-43 lead into the break behind the shooting strength of Porter, who had five first-half 3-pointers, and Jokic, who fell one assist and two rebounds shy of a first-half triple-double.
Denver’s early dominance was born of their unselfishness and outside shooting. With nine first-half assists, Jokic was more than content to serve his teammates rather than own the paint down low. And his teammates rewarded him by connecting on their open looks. Every starter finished the first half with at least four made buckets.
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February 28, 2021 at 10:20AM
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Nuggets crush Thunder behind Nikola Jokic’s triple-double, Michael Porter Jr.’s shooting - The Denver Post
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