The Denver Nuggets went into Monday night’s matchup against the Houston Rockets with some questions about whether or not their entire starting lineup would be sidelined. Even though they ultimately had all their stars available, they still fell short.
There was some optimism around the Nuggets after they won four of their previous five games, but Monday’s loss was deflating. The Rockets defended their home court with a 110-100 win, as the Nuggets simply fell flat.
While there is not much to take away from this semi-pathetic performance by the Nuggets, we can look at some of the team’s biggest winners and losers from Monday night’s loss in Houston.
Winner: Nikola Jokic
Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic got off to a slow start this season, causing some fans to be concerned about his unusual lack of production. However, he has picked things back up, and on Monday night, he looked like the Jokic we are used to seeing.
Jokic finished the loss with 25 points, 16 rebounds, nine assists, and two blocks on 11-21 shooting from the field. Sure, he could not do enough to lead the Nuggets to a win and still struggled to shoot from deep (1-5), but he has been trending in the right direction after the slow start.
With the Nuggets sitting at just 5-4 on the season, and superstars like Luka Doncic and Victor Wembanyama playing on another level, Jokic is far from the MVP conversation right now, but he is at least showing he is still one of the league’s premier talents.
Winner: Jamal Murray
The Nuggets have transformed into a two-man team, and their star tandem both shined in Monday’s loss. Jamal Murray finished with a game-high 38 points, shooting 14-23 from the field and 5-8 from beyond the arc.
Since flopping in the season opener with just six points, Murray has been on a tear. In his last eight games, he has averaged 28.3 points and 6.0 assists per game, following up his first All-Star appearance with another incredible season. He has scored 35 or more points in four of Denver’s nine games this season, including three games with 38 or more.
Murray did all he could to help the Nuggets’ struggling offense in Houston, but it still was not enough to salvage a poor team outing.
Loser: Aaron Gordon and the supporting cast
As I said, the Nuggets are turning into a two-man team, and it is not in a good way. The supporting cast has been a rollercoaster this season, with Aaron Gordon arguably being the biggest disappointment.
Gordon finished Monday’s loss with three points, five rebounds, two assists, and three turnovers on 1-6 shooting, while struggling to contain Kevin Durant and the Rockets’ offense. Gordon has had a rough go this season, and we can only hope he is able to turn things around soon.
In his defense, he was not the only issue for the Nuggets on Monday night. The Nuggets had no double-digit scorers besides Jokic and Murray, and Gordon, Christian Braun, and Cameron Johnson combined for just 15 points. The bench was not much better, with not a single reserve hitting a three-pointer, as everyone struggled to get things going.
Loser: Rebounding
The Nuggets have had issues with rebounding all season, ranking 21st in the league in rebounds per game and losing the rebound battle more often than they win it, and Monday’s loss was no different.
Of course, Jokic had no trouble on the boards, grabbing a season-high 16 rebounds, but the rest of the team combined to grab just 23. As a team, they finished with 39 rebounds, compared to Houston’s 51, and this is a bigger concern than some might realize.
Sure, their travel concerns might play a factor here with the team potentially not well-rested enough, but there was a clear lack of effort by the Nuggets in Houston. We should not overreact to a road loss against one of the league’s best teams, but the Nuggets need to prove this was a fluke.
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