The Nuggets didn’t have a very merry Christmas, but they at least salvaged a happy new year.
In their first game of 2025, they picked up their third consecutive win, 139-120 over the Hawks, by pulling away in a 41-24 third quarter when a dose of defense was desperately needed. They distanced themselves with a 12-0 run a few minutes into the second half, led by some tough shot-making from Michael Porter Jr.
“I think as the year’s gone on and on, we’re getting better and better (offensively),” Porter said.
Nikola Jokic amassed 23 points, 17 rebounds assists and 15 assists in 29 minutes. Had it been a closer contest, he might’ve had the opportunity to join Wilt Chamberlain and current teammate Russell Westbrook as the only players in NBA history with an elusive 20-20-20 game. Given the choice, though, the MVP would probably choose the outcome in which he gets to rest the fourth quarter. He’s averaging more than 37 minutes and has a harrowing back-to-back coming up Friday and Saturday against Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama.
When the Nuggets (19-13) visited Atlanta earlier this season, they bounced back from a low point by ending a six-game win streak for the Hawks. This time, they built on an impressive stretch of recent play by ending the Hawks’ four-game streak. Denver has now won eight of its last 11 to get to six games above .500 for the first time this season.
With a 5-for-9 night beyond the arc, Porter improved to 41.9% on the season and scored more than 20 points for the 14th time in 32 games. He eclipsed 20 in only 20 games during the 2023-24 regular season. Jamal Murray also went for 21 points on 14 shots.
In a game the Nuggets ended up winning in December, they ran out of timeouts with more than nine minutes remaining while trying to mount a comeback. Michael Malone was on the precipice of outdoing himself to ring in the new year. He used his fourth timeout with 5:31 remaining in the second quarter as defensive lapses and rebounding breakdowns continued to hold his team back. Atlanta had scored 27 points in the first 5 ½ minutes of the frame against Denver’s second unit.
The offense without Jokic had tried its best to keep up — DeAndre Jordan even had eight points during his stint — but the minutes still turned out to be a minus-12, ending with an easy transition layup for De’Andre Hunter off a Denver miss. As a dejected Malone called the timeout, Jordan stood motionless with his hands on his head for several seconds. Then he gestured, to nobody in particular, toward the basket Denver was defending. The message was clear: If anyone at Ball Arena wanted to get to the rim, the Nuggets would kindly move out of the way and allow them to pass.
In the meantime, the Nuggets’ offensive synergy returned home with them after a passing masterpiece in Utah. They had 14 assists and zero turnovers in the first frame, bringing their ratio over a five-quarter stretch to 52 to 7. Scoring 44 points in the paint was still enough for a 74-71 halftime lead, even if the color of Malone’s face didn’t indicate a team that was ahead.
“It looked like we’re just trying to outscore teams,” he said. “And that might work in the middle of the season, and that might work for a stretch of games … but if we’re going to be a team that’s serious about winning at a high level and trying to make the playoffs and win a playoff series, you can’t just give up 70 points in a half and just allow teams to just outrun you in transition and crash the glass for offensive rebounds.”
Jokic had a triple-double one minute into the second half. Westbrook joined him with 10 assists later in the third quarter (and finished with 16 points). The Nuggets are 9-2 this season when he starts.
Malone’s disappointment after an 11-point win over the Pistons last Saturday was that Denver “messed with the game” by letting a 25-point fourth-quarter lead dwindle all the way to seven, forcing Malone to put his starters back on the floor. This time, entering the fourth up 20, a Murray-led second unit managed to give Jokic and company the reprieve they needed.
“Those guys did a much better job, where we didn’t have to go back to our starters,” Malone said.
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