It took a while, perhaps too long, for the Denver Nuggets to get into their game on Friday night against the Utah Jazz.
Fortunately, for they’re rediscovering their clutch identity at the right time, making big shots and enough stops (kind of) to emerge with a win. Denver won 135-129 in their fifth win in a row to keep their streak alive.
Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray were dominant once again. Jokic finished the game with 33 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 assists while shooting 13-of-16 from the field against an undersized Jazz roster. Murray put up 31 points, 14 assists, and 6 rebounds of his own, shooting 5-of-10 from three and make history. More on that later.
Denver took a long time to get defense into the game, but they found a way in the fourth, outscoring the Jazz 37-24 in the fourth quarter as Denver’s offense took over and Utah’s offense wilted at the wrong moment (or right, depending on the goal).
That was, of course, right after the Jazz outscored the Nuggets 43-36 in the third quarter, an atrocious defensive effort in the moment only made better by Denver’s fourth quarter recovery.
“They jumped us, and we had to climb from behind,” Jamal Murray declared.
“They ran it down our throats, we weren’t getting back. I thought guys reacted to not making shots early in the game,” David Adelman said plainly about Denver’s lack of defense for much of the first three quarters. “When you do that, you put yourself up against it. You have to understand you have to sit down and guard to get yourself back into it, which we did in the fourth quarter.”
“We didn’t play any defense, and it’s hard when the team feels that they can just drive and score,” Nikola Jokic stated postgame. “We definitely need to do a better job guarding and protecting the paint.”
Of course, the Nuggets did recover. They found a way to earn their fifth win in a row. A lot of it came down to clutch time when the Nuggets outscored the Jazz significantly late in the game. Denver outscored Utah 18-5 in the final five minutes to turn what could’ve been an ugly deficit into another important win.
A huge element of the win was Tim Hardaway Jr., who scored 21 points off the bench, shot 5-of-12 from behind the three-point line, and was a +25 in the plus-minus at the end of the night. That was by far the highest on the team and showed how important Hardaway’s aggressiveness as a scorer impacted the game.
“Sometimes the biggest shots in the game are the ones that keep you in the game,” Adelman said of Hardaway’s shotmaking early in the fourth quarter.
Hardaway shot 0-of-4 from three in the first half and 5-of-8 in the second half. That ability to get hot and change the momentum was absolutely essential for Denver, and it’s a potential playoff element they were missing last season.
On a night when Christian Braun and Peyton Watson both struggled on the wing and it took Cam Johnson until the fourth quarter to hit some big shots, it’s important to give Hardaway the proper credit. He has played in all but one game this season, provided a level of comfort and stability as a floor spacer the Nuggets utilize constantly. Perhaps they over-utilize Hardaway at times, but that’s what having optionality is all about.
Finally, Jamal Murray had a big moment in the fourth quarter when he hit two three-pointers late in the game to help seal Denver’s victory. On the first of those shots, Murray set a new franchise record for single-season three-pointers made, hitting his 221st and then 222nd three-pointer of the season in the clutch. Murray passed Michael Porter Jr., who set the record in the 2023-24 season.
“I think it’s a reward for him playing well the last two, three years, and this is the season he gets rewarded with All-Star, records, maybe All-NBA team.” Jokic shared on Murray’s record.
Murray’s approach this season has been the most consistent on the team. Sometimes, he isn’t perfect, but the approach has always been good. Murray’s generating better shots overall, taking more threes than before, more free throws, and is making the game easier on himself.
“I’ve had confidence in my shot all my life,” Murray stated of his three-point shooting increased. “This is something I knew I could do, and it doesn’t surprise me.”
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that’s watched Jamal Murray for a long time. The capability has always been there, but the attention to detail and increased level of aggressiveness has jumped to a new level. Murray has attacked this season in a really impressive way, and as Jokic stated, awards and accolades are on the way for Murray. He made an All-Star team for the first time in February. Now, he’s well on his way to All-NBA.
Murray’s steps forward have kept Denver’s title window open even through the ups, downs, injuries, and shifting landscape. Jokic is always liable to put up crooked numbers, but Murray’s ability to absorb so much scoring and playmaking responsibility (he had 14 assists like it was nothing tonight) gives Denver two dynamic pillars they can lean on. If he and Jokic play up to their potential in the playoffs, anything is possible.
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