After an improbable victory over the Golden State Warriors, the Denver Nuggets now sit at 3-0 and atop the Western Conference standings.
In a game filled with emotion, the Nuggets found a way to defeat the defending world champions on a night where their offense was not firing on all cylinders. Denver’s win over the Warriors is now the second time this season where the Nuggets’ defense helped lead them to victory. The first time came in the regular season opener against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Neither were the prettiest of games, but the wins were important. Timely defense mixed with opportunistic offense has been the Nuggets key to success so far this season and it is a plan they executed to perfection in their victory over Golden State.
So without further ado, here are the five takeaways from the Nuggets massive victory over the Warriors.
The Nuggets are showing signs that they are not a one dimensional team
In years past, the Nuggets have been all about offense, offense, and more offense. At the beginning of what looks to be a promising season, the Nuggets are becoming much less one dimensional. They have become a force to be reckoned with on the defensive end of the floor through the first three games of the 2018-19 season.
This Denver squad seems different. Suddenly, defense is at the forefront of their success. The defensive prowess was on full display in the final quarter as the Nuggets were outscored by eight points, but they still found a way to win courtesy of a game sealing block from Juancho Hernanagomez. Somehow, the Nuggets defeated the Warriors,while holding them under 100 points.
JUANCHO HERNANGOMEZ: DEFENDER OF ALL THINGS GOOD https://t.co/X9AYwdUVyX
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 22, 2018
After holding their first three opponents under 100 points, the Nuggets have a defensive rating of 92.9, which is good for first place in the NBA. For a team that could not crack the top 20 each of the past few seasons, being in first place is certainly a welcomed sight.
“I thought our defense was terrific,” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said in his postgame press conference. “This is the defense I dream about… I firmly believe in defense being the corner piece to be a championship level team.”
Denver’s terrific defense certainly came up big when the Nuggets offense was searching for answers. If the Nuggets are able to keep up that defensive intensity moving forward, there is no telling how successful this team could be looking forward.
Gary Harris comes up big for the Nuggets
We’ve all grown accustomed to the consistent play of Harris, and we should have expected nothing less in his matchup against Klay Thompson and the Warriors. For a team reeling on offense, Harris rose to the occasion leading the Nuggets with 28 points on 11-20 shooting from the field with two steals and a block for good measure. His 16 second-half points paid off huge in the win, but his effort defensively was just as important. Harris was often matched up against Thompson, who finished the night with just 15 points while shooting 7-16 from the field and 1-6 from behind the three-point line.
“You can never relax,” said Harris when asked about guarding Thompson. “He’s such a great shooter you can’t really relax at all. You have to be ready to play at all times because he’s always live.”
That consistent effort on both ends of the floor from Harris — who didn’t just play with the Nuggets starters, but mixed in with the second unit as well — was direly important. With Will Barton out for the foreseeable future, that may be something we see more of from Malone and his rotations moving forward.
STOP
ON
A
DIME https://t.co/ijI3yCNjfP— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 22, 2018
No matter which unit he is playing with, Harris made a major impact in the Nuggets’ victory. His consistent play is something Denver can rely on night in and night out and it is a big reason as to why the Nuggets have been so successful through the first three games.
Denver’s second unit had their best performance of the season
When the Nuggets were struggling offensively, the bench unit provided a spark in the second quarter. With a little help from Harris, the second unit of Monte Morris, Trey Lyles, Mason Plumlee, Malik Beasley, and Hernnagomez played a huge role in the Nuggets picking up their third win of the season.
After combing to score just 12 total points against the Phoenix Suns, the second unit tripled that output by pouring in 36 points to outscore the Warriors bench by 15. Offensively, the combination of Morris, Lyles, and Plumlee was functioning at a high level all night. The bench unit was a big reason that Denver stayed in the game.
When Jamal Murray went down in the third quarter with a left tibia contusion, Morris filled in and the Nuggets starters did not miss a beat.
Meanwhile, Monte's cookin' 🔥 https://t.co/zFazW6H16E
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 22, 2018
The confidence and poise that Morris played with is uncanny for a second-year guard who has only played in six NBA games. It is not just Morris though, as every one of the guys in the Nuggets 11-man rotation made an impact against the Warriors.
Will we see a performance like that from the bench every night? Probably not, but if the second unit is able to provide that spark in most of the games this year, it will lead to the Nuggets winning a lot of basketball games.
Nuggets struggle to score early
After defeating the Suns roughly 23 hours before their matchup against the Warriors, the Nuggets played the part of a team playing on the second night of a back-to-back. From the opening tip, the Nuggets struggled to make shots.
Denver was certainly playing with tired legs early. They shot 10 three-point shots in the first quarter and only made one of them. The only three pointer of the first quarter came courtesy of Torrey Craig, who did a solid job filling in for Barton.
Get the start.
Set the tone. https://t.co/YOIW2yqLS2— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 22, 2018
It was tough for the Nuggets to overcome their first-quarter woes, but they found a way to piece it together for the final three quarters and came away with a huge victory.
Free-throw shooting almost cost Denver their victory
The Nuggets did a phenomenal job getting to the free-throw line, but struggled to make shots once they got there. The Nuggets shot just 57 percent from the free-throw line and missed 18 of their 42 free-throw attempts.
Each Nuggets player that attempted at least one free-throw missed one. Millsap shot just 3-8 from the line, putting his percentage at 66.7 percent on the season. The misses from Murray, who missed only one free throw all night, and Paul Millsap gave the Warriors life, and it is something the Nuggets need to capitalize on in games moving forward.
Is it an anomaly for a Nuggets team that usually does well from the free-throw line? Probably, but it still raises some concern seeing as the Nuggets almost lost to the Warriors because of it.
For that reason alone, expect the Nuggets to make that a point of emphasis before their game on Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings. Hopefully, they will shoot a much higher percentage in their matchup versus the Kings.