In what was one of the toughest games remaining on the schedule, the Denver Nuggets earned a clutch victory over the Toronto Raptors 121-115.
“That game was very playoff-like, you know, for both teams,” head coach David Adelman shared postgame. “The physicality, the different lineups, star players having moments.”
The Nuggets approached the game that way by the end, but there were plenty of ups and downs throughout the night. Denver lost the first and third quarters but won the second and fourth quarters, often getting off to poor starts with their primary group and finding a rhythm with the bench unit. That was certainly abnormal, but it was ultimately successful when the Nuggets found a great fourth quarter unit.
Denver began the fourth with Jamal Murray, Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr., Cam Johnson, and Spencer Jones, a small ball group to counter Toronto’s own guard and forward heavy style of play. Jonas Valanciunas collected his first DNP-CD of the season, and not having a center on the floor forced the Nuggets to amp up their speed, intensity, and commitment to defense. That worked, helped Denver outscore Toronto 36-21 in the final frame and make up a double-digit deficit.
Murray and Hardaway were the scoring stars with Murray piling in 31 points and 6 assists, shooting 10-of-18 from the field and 9-of-10 from the free throw line. His start to the quarter willed the Nuggets back into this game, scoring and playmaking against a strong Raptors defensive group.
Murray’s ability to assume playmaking responsibility for the Nuggets in the non-Jokic minutes is very important. He’s responsible for breaking down the defense in an efficient way, and it was his impact that led to great shots for others as well, even if Murray didn’t receive an assist directly.
Hardaway also shined off the bench with 23 points on seven made three-pointers, shooting 7-of-10 from distance while adding 4 rebounds and a steal. Hardaway’s shotmaking got the crowd into the game in the second half, with THJ hitting a significant three-pointer in the middle of the fourth to put the Nuggets up 104-101 and force a Raptors timeout.
“His confidence level never wavers, which is a talent,” Adelman emphasized about Hardaway’s shooter mentality. “I think we all wish we had it in certain parts of life, and in basketball, that’s what he has. He firmly believes after he misses the next five, the next one’s going in.”
“He’s confident for any shot, every game,” Murray shared about Hardaway. “He doesn’t overdo it. He’s not trying to dribble through three guys to get it off. He’s not trying to rush it. It’s: ‘When I get it, I’m letting it fly.’”
Hardaway was asked about the Sixth Man of the Year award and if he was thinking about that in the midst of a great bench season in Denver:
“If I was sitting here saying I wasn’t thinking about that – I’d be lying. I do think about that. When I came here, it was one of my goals. But also it comes with team success.”
Between those two, the Nuggets had enough significant scoring to get through the game. Nikola Jokic made some clutch buckets throughout the night and ultimately hit a tough go-ahead turnaround floater over RJ Barrett late in the game. It wasn’t Jokic’s best performance of the season, but he put pressure on the Raptors consistently to adjust to him.
Aaron Gordon also played, and while it wasn’t a loud 16 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 assists, Gordon made impactful plays throughout the night, including in the clutch. Gordon’s block on Scottie Barnes was incredibly impressive, and he hit a big fourth quarter three when he returned to the floor.
The Nuggets fought off a talented Raptors team and earned a good win at home. It wasn’t perfect, but it was good process. The Nuggets played hard, executed in the late game moments, and made enough plays to win against a playoff team. That’s a good sign for them.
When asked directly about Denver’s level of confidence and belief, Murray had some interesting extended thoughts:
“We’ve done it, and we’ve also seen it ourselves. We’ve seen it behind closed doors without you guys. We’ve talked about it. We’ve done it year in and year out, even those years that we lost, or lost by a small margin. So we know what we’re capable of.
We know the talent. I know how great Jok is. I know how good of a shooter Tim is. I know how selfless and patient AG is. I know how much of a team player and leader CB is. I can go down the line, but this is what we have in the locker room. There’s no reason for us not to believe.”
There’s a lot of pressure facing the Nuggets right now, but with several games at home and several opportunities remaining against sub .500 teams, there’s a chance for Denver to keep moving forward heading into the playoffs. They won’t get the seed they want, but if they continue to string together performances like this one, they will win a lot of games to end the year.
