The Denver Nuggets withstood a battle of the New Orleans Pelicans, including Zion Williamson’s 39th career record, and took the victory over New Orleans by 113 to 108. Williamson added 10 rebounds and 5 assists to his line of monsters, but the Nuggets responded with 6/6/9 Jokic, an effort of 23 points and 11 assists from Murray and 25 points and 5 grants from Michael Porter Jr. The big three from Denver were enough to overcome Zion and the fierce effort of the Pelicans – bad. But on a night that must have been full of excitement after the Gary Harris, RJ Hampton and Isaiah Hartenstein negotiations, it was enough.
Game flow
Jamal Murray hit a backward jump and Paul Millsap was blocked by Zion Williamson, but he grabbed the diversion and put him back in Denver. The Pelicans responded with a Steven Adams paint finish and a Zion three. The turns to Denver came early, leading to an initial 10-4 lead in Pelicans. Jokic put in a runner, but Millsap struggled early to keep Zion away from anywhere he wanted. Zion hit home one more dunk, Barton had another turn and Brandon Ingram’s three raised to 17-8.
Ingram and Michael Porter Jr. exchanged buckets, and Porter on the boards helped Denver contain the tide briefly, but the Pelicans started 10 out of 12 on the field. Jokic hit a delayed float, MPJ hit a three with the clock ending and the Nuggets struggled to return with a Murray three making the difference just 4. Denver hit some free throws and slowed New Orleans with a Zone, and Nnaji tied for 26 with a minute to finish. Zion had an assist and then an And-1 final, and New Orleans ended with a 7-0 streak and a 33-26 lead after 1.
Zion opened the second quarter with another submission at the edge, while Murray failed to submit at the other end. Eric Bledsoe hit three more, while Denver had lost 10 of 11, with Zeke Nnaji’s only mark. A Murray twist led to another bucket of Zion and a 14 point lead for New Orleans. Jokic had to come back very early, just 2 minutes from the room, as the bench was in terrible shape. Will Barton finally got a corner three to knock, Porter got a dunk, but Denver was just negotiating with the Pelicans. It was 45-33 in the fourth minute when Barton gave Jokic to the tray and Murray hit a bucket to make 10. However, every time the Nuggets looked like they would return for a two-goal game, the Pelicans hit another 3 Jokic responded with one of his own to make 53-44 Pelicans with just over 3 minutes remaining. Millsap submitted an And-1, Porter hit a curl 3, Jokic deflected on his own fault, but again the Pelicans could not miss and got 3 free throws on a bad call to end the half with 63-54.
Jokic and Zion exchanged buckets to start half, so Zion took Paul Millsap’s pocket for another bucket. MPJ responded with a three, then Murray’s paint bucket made a deficit of 10 again for Denver. Millsap took an attack from Zion, Jokic hit a hook, then got a long 2 after forcing an Ingram turn. MPJ buried three more in Ingram’s face to reduce him to 3, but Zion’s base dunk kept the lead for New Orleans. The Pels make some baskets, but a block from Barton led to a Millsap three to reduce to a game of possession. Denver continued to lose points in the New Orleans courts, however, and failed to retake the lead. Jokic blocked Bledsoe and Murray ran for a 3 that finally got the game in 80 with just over 3 minutes left in the room.
Jokic buried 3 more when the Pelicans finally started falling short, so he fed MPJ to bury. Zion challenged Jokić and won by a tray, then finished again. A move from Murray to Jokic left the Pelicans to take the lead again to end the quarter at 86-85.
Millsap started the final picture with a dug cleaning of an MPJ bug. JaMychal Green missed a few trios at the top of the brace, while Josh Hart made his triple for the Pelicans. Dozier missed a three and was blocked one against three while the bank seemed to forget that MPJ was out there. Millsap hit a three, the Nuggets hit a counterattack and both Jokic Murray had to go back. Murray missed a shot, but Jokic retreated Zion to reduce New Orleans’ lead to 6. New Orleans hit a 3, so Hart’s free kicks increased to 100-89 Pelicans.
Jokic and Dozier hit buckets of paint to reduce to 7, and then Murray stole the ball and landed a traditional three-point play. Murray’s free throw capped a 7-0 run by the Nuggets, but Jokić’s terrible turn in the painting led to a Zion tray across the line. MPJ came back and was immediately fed by a 3 from Millsap to make it a game of possession again. Millsap then traded his own three for the 102-102 draw. Zion made a couple of free throws, Jokić buried 3 more, but Zion scored back over Jokić. Millsap finished in the painting, but Zion continued to demolish Denver in the painting, doing what he wanted. Jokic managed a pair of paint finishes to give Denver a 3-point lead with a minute to go. Millsap grabbed a crucial rebound on a failed Ingram 3, Jokic missed a jump and Barton’s key block on a three left Denver still on top of three with just a few seconds remaining. The Nuggets forced the 24-second violation and ended the game on the 113-108 free-throw line.
Final thoughts
- I’m happy that Denver has its great side defender, Aaron Gordon. I wish we could have seen him tonight at Zion Williamson, because Zion wiped out Millsap and JaMychal Green in the first half with 19 points from just 8 shots. He continued on his way in the second half, passing through Porter and Jokic and taking Millsap’s pocket for a career break. Denver needs a defender with the same engine and athleticism, and Gordon does. I look forward to seeing you in a Denver uniform on Sunday. Nuggets need this if they want to climb to the top of the West.
- Denver’s stagnation has finally ended with a narrow victory, but they need some new solutions to old problems. The bank was abjectly awful tonight, and it obviously misses Monte Morris and his steady direction. MPJ staying in the game at the start of the fourth period and never being fed by any of the bank’s players again was a serious problem that put Denver behind the 8 ball and forced a few extra minutes for Jokic and Murray. The Denver Big Three ended with more than 39 minutes against a team that was fighting for tenth place in the West. Denver needs to get its bench production to ease the burden on its stars, and that process also begins on Sunday, with some schedule changes. A return to Monte Morris soon would not be too bad.
- Sunday, Sunday, Sunday. The new Nuggets starts on Sunday. Don’t miss it.