The Denver Nuggets hit a new low on the season last night when they lost to a Washington Wizards team that had won just two games. There was little time to cry over spilt milk though with Denver on a back to back and facing the Atlanta Hawks in Atlanta tonight. Perhaps the embarrassing loss to the Wizards was just what Denver needed because they responded tonight by coming out and playing their most complete game of the season. They were ready to go from the jump, didn’t have a huge slump to open the second half and played well in the non Nikola Jokic minutes. That effort, combined with yet another incredible came from Nikola, ends up giving Denver a blowout win, 141-111.
Denver got out to a good start. Their defense was tighter than we’ve seen in previous contests and they secured defensive rebounds. Denver’s offense scuttled as the quarter went on but Atlanta was still struggling to score themselves so the Nuggets kept a small lead. They continued playing well with everybody sharing the scoring load among the starters. Denver got the lead up to ten before Atlanta stopped the bleeding for a moment. Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. carried the Nuggets offense while the bench started filing in and kept their offense going. That continued to be the story down the stretch of the quarter as Denver capped perhaps their best first quarter of the season with a 38-23 lead.
CB finding Mike of the oop 🫡 pic.twitter.com/m9RWWG7K1K
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 8, 2024
The bench group kept up with the defensive effort initially and held Denver’s big lead. They weren’t as crisp as the starting unit though so the lead didn’t grow. Atlanta started chipping away a bit but the Nuggets found just enough points to still maintain a fifteen point lead when Nikola checked back in. Atlanta was doing just enough to keep the game from getting totally out of hand but with Jokic back in the Hawks couldn’t make any progress either. With the quarter winding down the Nuggets were still leading by sixteen. Porter Jr. once again was giving support to Nikola to lead Denver’s run. He lived in the paint and got easy bucket after easy bucket. Jokic capped off the second big quarter in a row with a half court heave that got nothing but the bottom of the net. At half Denver was up 71-48.
Nikola doing Nikola things 🃏 pic.twitter.com/ymhdx5SKQy
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 9, 2024
The Nuggets had some solid energy to start the second half but the Hawks got some offensive rebounds to get second chance points while Denver got no calls from the refs. Jokic and Porter cared not, they punished Atlanta in the paint and grew Denver’s advantage to thirty points. The Nuggets still kept letting Atlanta get offensive rebounds which is the only thing that kept the game from getting historically silly. At the six minute mark it was still a thirty point Denver lead. They started to get a little sloppy coming down the stretch of the quarter. Turnovers and even more offensive rebounds let the Hawks cut into the lead. With two minutes left Atlanta had it back under twenty but Jokic led a 7-0 run to curb their momentum. At the end of three Denver had it back up above twenty with a 106-84 lead.
Mike through three quarters
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 9, 2024
22 PTS / 7 REB / 3 AST pic.twitter.com/pEu90nYv2I
Jalen Pickett had some solid minutes to open the fourth and knocked down a couple jumpers (including a three). The bench group really benefitted from having Porter in the lineup with them. He lead their scoring effort which offset Trae Young making sure that he got his stats. Jokic checked back in with the Nuggets still leading by more than twenty. You could tell the Nuggets were tired but Joker kept willing his way through Atlanta on his way to yet another absolute monster of a scoring night. With Denver up twenty-five and three minutes to go he checked out for the last time with forty-eight points, sixteen rebounds and eight assists. The deep bench finished the game out and had some positive moments. Denver wins big 141-111.
Brought the heat in ATL
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 9, 2024
Joker: 48 PTS / 14 REB / 8 AST / 3 STL
MPJ: 26 PTS / 7 REB / 3 AST
CB: 17 PTS / 8 REB / 4 AST / 2 STL
Julian: 13 PTS / 2 REB / 3 AST
Russ: 9 PTS / 11 AST / 2 STL pic.twitter.com/qc0ROjoZgi
Jokic is inevitable
You know how we’ve always said Jokic could be a thirty plus a night scorer if he wanted to? We’re seeing that proven right in front of our eyes. It’s not the most ideal way to win the game because it puts so much on his shoulders but tonight shows how the Nuggets can be a dominant team by simply coming out with focus and energy while Nikola does his thing. When MPJ is attacking the basket like he was tonight he can absolutely be the Robin to Nikola’s Batman. Like it or not, that’s a job that’s currently open right now with Jamal Murray struggling and dealing with injuries. The bench didn’t look completely helpless, the energy was up overall. That’s a recipe for a win every night when you have the best player on earth and Denver needs to replicate this effort every single game.
The Jokic/Russ combo is a thing of beauty
The chemistry between Westbrook and Jokic is really starting to blossom and it’s no coincidence that Nikola’s putting up these huge scoring numbers while Russ is starting at point guard. He brings a different element to the game than Jamal does both with his ability to put pressure on defenses by attacking downhill, but also with his ability to throw pinpoint entry passes to Nikola. You take the accuracy and speed that Russ can put on a pass to the post and combine it with Jokic’s soft hands and size and you get a deadly combination. Once Jamal comes back he will go back to starting of course but getting more and more Jokic/Russ minutes is something the Nuggets will need to prioritize.