The 10-piece gives you ten things to know from each of the Nuggets’ 82 games. Today’s edition breaks down the Nuggets’ 139-120 win over the Atlanta Hawks.
1. Soaring: The Nuggets’ offense is red hot right now, and they torched the Hawks by shooting 56% from the field and 40% from three. Denver had 44 assists on 53 made three-pointers. Michael Malone has often said he’s not worried about their offense, that they can score with anyone, and he has been right lately,
2. First-Half Failure: The Nuggets led at half but their defense was wretched, giving up over 70 points in the first half. It was ugly and both teams were providing zero resistance at the rim. Denver gave up 14 fastbreak points and 14 second-chance points in the first half. Michael Malone, as you can imagine, was livid.
3. Buckle Down: Malone said he lit into the team at the half and told the team the defensive effort was “embarrassing.” While Malone admitted he can’t go in and do that every time, it once again worked as Denver ignited its defense in the second-half.
4. The New Dynamic Duo: The Nuggets are now 9-2 with Westbrook starting. The energy and pace he plays with, combined with his chemistry with Jokic, provides a combination that opponents can’t really combat. Jokic and Westbrook are routinely baffling teams with their interior passing and are beating teams by 10.6 points per 100 possessions.
5. Another 20-Piece: Jamal Murray once again scored 20, his eighth time scoring 20 or more in his last nine games. Murray is starting to catch up to his averages last season. His efficiency is better since December 1. As good as Westbrook has been, Murray has held up his part even more.
6. What’s Needed: Michael Porter Jr. said last week that after looking at things, he decided the team needed him to take more 3’s. And he’s been doing that. He was 5-of-9 from deep in this one, scoring 24. Porter has shrugged off a mini-slump and is back to being the 2nd-most consistent scoring weapon for Denver.
7. Floater Game: Julian Strawther is tearing teams up with his floater, often coming off handoffs from Nikola Jokic or DeAndre Jordan. I asked Strawther about that shot and he says it’s pretty much unguardable from a guy his size at 6-7.
8. Tactical Box-Out: After a stop, DeAndre Jordan continues to box out Trae Young for a good 30 seconds after while the Nuggets attacked on offense. I asked him why after. “I didn’t want to have to guard his ass one on one.” Fair enough, DJ.
9. Energy Burst: Peyton Watson gave great effort and got the crowd fired up, picking up four steals and blocks. Watson’s effort in the second half was crucial to not only building the lead, but keeping it so the starters could get a rest.
10. Up Next: The Nuggets face Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs in a home and home back-to-back on Friday in Denver and Saturday in San Antonio. Expect a monster Jokic game.
