Denver Nuggets Keys to Success
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There’s no secret, the Denver Nuggets were blown out in both games versus the Golden State Warriors, on the road, at the Chase Center. The games were ugly, both 15+ point losses that were only close through 1.5 quarters and then an absolute clinic for the next three quarters by the Warriors. The Denver Nuggets looked uninspired, frustrated, and simply out of rhythm. But they have an opportunity tonight to at least save some face and prove that they can hang. The Nuggets have a chance to claw their way back in and make it competitive by getting a win in their first home game of the series.
During their championship runs, the Warriors were known for blowing teams doors off teams in the third quarter. They have done that in both games versus Denver. They were known to dance, smile, laugh, joke and have fun on the court at the expense of the other team. They have been doing that against Denver. They were known for absolute blistering number of three-point shots, which changed the league to mirror their image. Now, it seems they are taking a similar number of threes as the Nuggets, but they are simply much more efficient.
Nikola has not been great, He has shot the ball inefficiently, he’s been turnover prone, and he is shooting the three ball the same way he ended the season, poorly. Draymond Green has been allowed to absolutely harass the back-to-back MVP and he has been flustered to the point of a technical foul in the first game and an ejection from technical in the second. Nikola must change his approach and be a thread to score from wherever he touches the ball. They are giving him space because he has struggled to shoot the ball. They are sending help infrequently, but effectively at the bottoms of shot clocks. Nikola will elevate his game and get back to a place that we are used to seeing him.
In my article previewing the series, I recorded some things that I thought were going to be keys to the series and I think most of the major points remain the same.
Somebody Else Must Help Jokic
The same discussions that were had during the regular season of course are exacerbated in the post season. The Nuggets have a Super Star in Jokic and then a ton of high-end role players. When the roster is healthy, they have three Super Stars surrounded by a bunch of role players which is more the correct makeup for a contender roster in today’s NBA. Unfortunately, MPJ and Jamal Murray have not played all year and so the reality is that the nuggets 4th and 5th best players are getting minutes and expecting to contribute like their 2nd and 3rd best players would.
The reality is that those lofty expectations were never fair, but the belief that this was a playoff team despite who else was on the floor with Jokic never waned. Nikola dragged a team to the playoffs with a supporting cast that would likely be dead last in the NBA without Jokic on the floor. Now, not trying to say the players on the roster are all terrible, they are an above average bench and depth unit when they are in their proper roles, but when everyone must slide up two spots and the expectations of consistency raise, all those role players fall flat. So, what the Nuggets get is a bunch of players that on any given night can have a big game, looking at Monte Morris, Jeff Green, Aaron Gordon, Bones Hyland, Will Barton, but on a night-to-night basis they will not deliver consistency. This puts the onus on Nikola Jokic to pick apart defenses on every possession and keep finding his teammates until he finds the one that is going to be his supporting cast for the night.
Now, Nikola has made his living these last two seasons doing exactly that, but the Warriors have four guys that can carry the team every night and Draymond lives to bring them along the same way Nikola does. Difference is whoever Draymond finds, is likely to hit their open shots at a clip much higher than league average. The Nuggets have to figure out early who’s going to support Nikola to start game three and defend the other side with more pride and commitment.
Perimeter Defending
During the five straight seasons the Warriors went to the NBA Finals, they had what they called a death lineup, which has a new iteration this season. During the regular season the lineup of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins, and Jordan Pool basically never got minutes together since everyone was consistently injured. I guess the Nuggets were lucky enough to be the first team to experience the ceiling of this unit.
That unit has gone on some insane runs against the Nuggets, and it’s apparent there is nothing the team can do to stop it. They can’t stop the pick and roll, the pin down screens, the give and go, the pick and pop, they can’t stay in front of the guy they are defending, and then they can’t collect rebound of missed shots. And the part that makes this most concerning, is that they also cannot score against it. Draymond can defend Jokic in such a way that he’s rendered ineffective. So, a unit with three guards and a 6’6” center, can clog the paint, defend the perimeter, generate turnovers, and score at will and the Nuggets are just out there getting their cardio and watching the scoreboard go in the wrong direction.
The Nuggets have a responsibility to pick their poison and say either A.) you’re not going to beat us by dribble drive and kick, playing fundamental defense not reacting to pump fakes, and giving enough space to respect the drive, B.) you’re not going to beat us by three-point shots, we will run you off every three and force a blow by, or C.) you’re not going to beat us with your best players, take someone out of the game with double teams and box and one defensive concepts. Because what they are doing instead is losing at every level of the game on defense. Getting clobbered by drives, getting cooked by offensive rebounds and kickout dagger threes, watching three after three go in, and absolutely being tormented by the Warriors stars (usual suspects according to Monte Morris) of Klay, Steph and Poole.
The Nuggets must choose to defend better. They must recognize the offense the Warriors are running and defend it accordingly. The Nuggets must show pride in that they aren’t okay giving up 123 and 126 points in their first two playoff games of the season. Understand that the team they are playing has tendencies and elite talent, but that doesn’t mean that you cannot stop them ever. Secure rebounds, fight through screens, respect the dribble penetration, keep hands in passing lanes, and be active on the defensive weakside. All these concepts I know Mike Malone preaches because I’ve seen the roster have really solid defensive nights.
Disciplined Basketball
This is a no-brainer.
- Jokic has to return to MVP form and MVP efficiency
- Stop getting technical fouls
- Play the game of basketball, for the love of the game
- Don’t fight your teammates on the sidelines
- Stop fouling three-point shooters (5x in this series a jump shooter has been fouled attempting a three)
- Basketball fundamentals
- Lower turnovers
- Knock down uncontested shots
- Play with some pride and energy
- Take advantage of mismatches
Bench Must Elevate
I don’t think the bench has been particularly bad, and as a matter of fact I think they are on the plus side of plus minus, but there are opportunities for the bench to take over a game and change the outcome. I think that the starters cannot continue to be as bad as they have been, but the bench can elevate the team and keep the team in the game.
Bones Hyland can be a difference maker, and he’s scored double digit points in both games, he is a willing defender and has range to impact games and has excellent basketball IQ. I wouldn’t be shocked if he gets a legit opportunity to play serious minutes the rest of this series. Of course, on most Nuggets fan forums, the decision to keep Vlako Cancar and Facundo Campazzo on this roster over Davon Reed appears to be a major blunder, as Reed was the rosters best defender and seemingly only capable perimeter defender. I wonder what the impact of more lock-down defender on any one of the splash bros would have on this series.
Demarcus Cousins has been ejected because of technical fouls and was seen on the sidelines butting heads with Will Barton, the team must stay united and play together to any chance of even winning a single game. I’d like to see Malone run the starting 5, then throw out the bench, then finish the first half with the starters minus their worst performer plus the bench’s top performer. Facundo Campazzo may also get some minutes this coming game because he is a speedy, willing defender, that can stick with both Pool and Steph Curry.
I think that the Jeff Green, Will Barton, Aaron Gordon staring five has been so ineffective because they simply are outmatched when forced to defend any of the three guards on the Warrior’s starting unit. Switching up the matchup might help both the starting and bench units be more competitive on both sides of the floor.
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