First Quarter
The first stint by the Nuggets in this game was a very positive one, especially for the Aaron Gordon stand in, Peyton Watson. He got the first bucket of the game off a drive, and then got a big block and steal in succession. Add in his three pointer, and the Nuggets had found a way to thrive. They started the game 3 of 4 from beyond the arc, with Jamal Murray hitting his first three point attempt after returning in this game from a concussion.
The offense was humming, but the defense was a different story. The perimeter defense of the team has taken a significant step back from the championship year, and this game was not entirely different. Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, and Julian Strawther were all getting cooked on the perimeter. Tyler Herro and Terry Rozier were having an easy time hunting for baskets. Jimmy Butler did get hurt though and that weakened the Heat.
Once Russ got in, the tempo ticked up a little bit and the offense continued to be great. He’s probably the best passer Jokic has ever played with. The offense was great with either him or Jamal on the court, and the Nuggets posted 40 points in the first quarter. They shot 6 of 9 from beyond the arc. They were creating good looks, and converting at a great rate off of them. The defense left a bit to be desired, but the Heat were playing bad so it didn’t really matter. At the end of the first, the score was 40-27.
Second Quarter
The second quarter was off to a less than ideal start. Russ missed a turnaround jumper to kick it off, and then Bam scored 4 quick points that forced Malone into a timeout early. Strawther fouled him and missed a three pointer right before. Out of the timeout, things didn’t improve for the Nuggets’ bench. They couldn’t find a bucket to save their lives, and it was clear that they couldn’t find a rhythm on either end of the floor. The bench front court of Zeke Nnaji and MPJ wasn’t cutting it on defense. The Nuggets were hemorrhaging points and didn’t score for the first three minutes of the quarter. Malone was forced into yet another timeout.
However, shocker, when Nikola Jokic checked back in the Nuggets scored on his second possession back. They quickly got back to the scoring ways of the first quarter, but the defense still didn’t find a fix. Jamal Murray and Julian Strawther were particularly poor for a stretch of the second. Jokic settled everyone in though, and the Nuggets started to get their lead back.
Christian Braun caught fire towards the end of the quarter and pitched in two more three pointers, putting him up to a perfect 3/3 from beyond the arc for the half. Jamal was also launching, putting up 8 3 pointers in just 17 minutes. That third one helped get him up to 1,000 career made threes. The Nuggets were keeping the Heat’s defense honest, and it paid off for them. 4 starters had at least 13 points or more, and they went into the half up 11, 71-60.
Third Quarter
The Nuggets continued their hot streak into the second half, all the momentum carried over. MPJ kicked it off with a 3 pointer, Braun continued it with a dunk, and Jamal and Jokic also got involved. In the first 3 minutes of the quarter, the Nuggets starters had scored 15 points. They also played some better defense than they did in the first half, and also Bam just wasn’t hitting shots. They got the lead up to a 22 point game before Spoelstra called a timeout.
The lead continued to balloon for a while, getting all the way up to 26 at one point. However, that wouldn’t last. The Nuggets would start to take their foot off the gas which led to an 18-4 run for the Heat. One that saw the lead shrink all the way to 12. They just weren’t forcing the issue on offense anymore, and the defense had been bad all night, but reached new lows. They did manage to recover a bit by the end of the quarter, but the third in general was a very disappointing one for the Nuggs.
Hunter Tyson did put together a nice little run for himself where he scored 7 straight though – including his first 3 pointer of the season. He’d then score two layups as well which got the score to 104-90, favoring the Nuggets.
Fourth Quarter
Michael Malone threw out an experimental lineup to try something at the start of the final frame. He threw out a lineup that featured Russell Westbrook/Jamal Murray/Julian Strawther/Michael Porter Jr./Peyton Watson. Oddly enough, it actually worked. PWat was able to hold his own against Bam on defense, largely because Bam played very poorly tonight. However, he also looked good on offense too. So Peyton Watson at the 5 was working well enough. Jamal Murray also knocked in a jumper, and Spoelstra was forced into a timeout quickly into the fourth.
The team threw a couple turnovers that saw the lead cut back to 14, but then they locked in a bit more. They stopped being as careless. MPJ and Russ made a pair of triples, and Peyton had a mid-range jumper fall. The defense also started to look better, and the Nuggets pushed the lead to 19. They wanted to do as good as they can to afford Jokic some rest. This team never makes things quite that simple though, do they?
Well, the Heat caught fire and the Nuggets continued to play some lackluster defense. That led to the lead getting cut in to, significantly. It went all the way back to 7 points, but Jokic and Jamal clutched up. They stopped it from getting even closer and the Nuggets wound up winning, final score 135-122. Nikola Jokic led the way with 30 points, 11 rebounds, and 14 assists while shooting 85% from the field. Jamal Murray pitched in 28 points on 9 of 17 shooting from the field. MPJ and Christian Braun both had 21 as well. Russell Westbrook had 10 assists, and Peyton Watson had 16 points and 5 rebounds.
Song of the Game
The song of the game for today is Easy Lover by Philip Bailey and Phil Collins. Right now, this team is easy to love. It’s fun, they’ve been playing fast and upbeat ball. The ball is popping, the vibes are high, and right now, they’re one of the best teams in the league.
