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Six Piece: Why Threes Are Bad For Denver
Jan 27, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic (9) and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) hug after a game at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton/Matt Marton-Imagn Images
The Six Piece, formerly 10-piece, gives you six things to know from each of the Nuggets’ 82-game season.
1. WIND AND RAIN (OF THREES): The Nuggets went to the Windy City and got rained on as the Bulls hit 24 threes on 53 attempts while Denver took only 27 total.
2. TRENDS: This season the Nuggets are just 9-7 against teams with a top-10 three-point rate, and 5-7 against the top-10 teams in three-point percentage. Chicago is both.
3. LAPSED: Denver’s effort mentally defensively was abysmal. They left open good shooters, crashed in on non-threat drivers, constantly confused rotations and were mixed up in mid-transition.
4. BRIGHT SPOT: Christian Braun had a career high 28 points on 11-of-15 shooting and was Denver’s best overall player considering defense even with Joker dropping 33-12-14.
5. FAMILIAR: The Nuggets lost the non-Jokic minutes by eight and while Denver wasn’t good enough in Joker’s minutes, it was the smallball minutes with Aaron Gordon that hurt, with DeAndre Jordan picking up a DNP-CD. Jamal Murray had 18 points on just 8-of-20 shooting.
Jan 27, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) works for the ball against Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) in the second half at TD Garden. | David Butler II/David Butler II-Imagn Images
The Knicks starters were having fun, the bench was having fun, the deep bench was having fun, Tom Thibodeau may have even cracked a smile at one point.
By the time the fourth quarter rolled around and the Knicks led the Grizzlies by 20 points, with Knicks backup point guard Cam Payne practically waltzing downhill, uncontested to the basket, there wasn’t a more fun game to be found on a Monday night. Definitely not for the Grizzlies, but they’re a resilient team who will learn from the loss.
What the win and the Knicks ingenuity — the way New York was dominant but allowed for a shifting dominance — made me think about was the Celtics. Specifically how last season Boston was celebrated for their competitive exactitude, and what their losses this season are showing about their rigidity. Namely, that it could cost them.
The most striking stat to me in the Knicks win last night was that the team tallied 32 assists compared to the Grizzlies’ 21. New York was shooting from everywhere but there can be a temptation with a lead that big for teams to start letting the ball fly from deep, chucking up hero shots because they’ve got the padding of points and a nice boost of confidence.
Katie Heindl is a credentialed NBA and WNBA writer, her bylines have appeared with The New York Times Magazine, SLAM, The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Dime, Rolling Stone, among others. She writes the bestselling Substack, Basketball Feelings and is working on a book of the same name.
Milestone In a historic performance against the Bulls, Nikola Jokic set a new NBA record, solidifying his place in the league’s history. Jokic’s triple-double marked an unprecedented achievement. (Sports Illustrated)
Rumor There’s buzz around a potential major trade between the Nuggets and the Bulls. This trade rumor could significantly impact both teams. (Sports Illustrated)
Replay The Nuggets fell to the Bulls in a disappointing game. Analyzing the match recap reveals critical insights into their performance. (Denver Stiffs)
3peat (ICYMI)
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