On a Nuggets road trip packed with memorable moments and sequences, one that won’t be remembered is the start of the fourth quarter in Portland.
Trailing 104-87 as Nikola Jokic went to the bench, Denver’s second unit suddenly supplied its best stint of the season — a 16-2 run fueled by reinvigorated defense and steady rebounding.
The result rendered it void. So did the surrounding games. Whereas the Nuggets ended up losing at the buzzer in Portland, they actually completed their dramatic rallies in Sacramento and New Orleans. Who’s going to remember an almost-but-not-quite 17-point comeback when it’s followed by a successful 17-point comeback three days later?
Michael Malone.
Stability is a rare commodity when Jokic is resting. Denver’s 10th-year coach recognizes the importance of riding out whatever’s working in those minutes until it’s not anymore.
DeAndre Jordan is working these days.
“We’ve kind of settled into our backup five right now with DJ, so I think that helps. You know. ‘Is it Dario (Saric)? Is it Zeke (Nnaji)? Is it DJ?’ Right now, it’s DeAndre Jordan,” Malone said Monday.
“And he’s playing well for us, and trying to get those guys more and more comfortable, creating that on-court chemistry. But I think if that group can go out there and hold their own defensively and execute offensively — even if we don’t score, just generate good shots (and) not turn the ball over — now we’re giving ourselves a chance.”
Saric was inactive with a sprained ankle for five games earlier this month, but he was cleared to play in both games of Denver’s recent back-to-back against the Pelicans and Suns. Malone stuck with the “if it ain’t broke” philosophy anyway, and Jordan’s lineups continued to make a winning impact. During the Nuggets’ 5-1 stretch entering their Christmas clash with Phoenix, their net rating was 8.6 with the 36-year-old on the floor.
He grabbed five rebounds in five minutes during the run in Portland. He capped a vital 6-point possession with a dunk during a fourth-quarter run in New Orleans.
“I feel like we’re just kind of starting to find our identity a little bit, which is, we’re gonna come out there and play hard and try to get stops and run and put defense into the game,” Jordan told The Post. “Try to muck it up a little bit. And our job is to honestly come out there and hold the lead. Or cut into deficits. Some nights are going to be different, but I feel like we’re starting to catch a rhythm a little bit.”
The personnel around Jordan has varied. Jamal Murray, who’s back to staggering with the bench most nights, has found harmony next to Russell Westbrook. But Murray was out with his own sprained ankle on Monday, causing Westbrook to play most of his minutes with the starting lineup and Jalen Pickett to slide into the second unit. For the second time in as many outings for Pickett, he was able to connect with Jordan on a lob.
“Just trying to keep the lead or whatever it is in the non-Nikola minutes,” Pickett said. “Just trying to hold it, so it’s not so much stress on the starters. We felt like they got worn down last year, so we’re just trying to take a little bit of a load off of them this year.”
Peyton Watson has been the most constant presence in bench lineups with Jordan, simply because Denver isn’t dealing with any injuries at Watson’s position lately that would require him to start. During the six-game surge before Christmas, 63 of Jordan’s 70 minutes were shared with the 22-year-old forward. The team’s net rating was 14.1 in those minutes.
Another way to measure the second unit’s renaissance: In those six games combined, the Nuggets outscored their opponents by 18 when Jokic was seated on the bench. The “non-Nikola minutes,” in Pickett’s words, were never worse than a minus-three.
If that continues to be the trend, Malone has no intention of veering away from Jordan anytime soon.
“The best part about that is, now I don’t have to put Nikola back in until the seven-minute mark (of quarters),” Malone said on Monday. “Tonight I put him in around the 6:30 mark, I think, of the second quarter. So those guys have done an outstanding job.”
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