The Denver Nuggets took out their frustrations over Thursday’s loss in Milwaukee with an impressive 134-119 win vs the Detroit Pistons.

The Nuggets couldn’t be stopped offensively, shooting 56.0% from the field, 54.8% from three, and attempting 31 free throws. Turnovers were the only blemish on what was an exceptional game on the second night of a back-to-back. The Pistons played a physical brand of basketball against Denver, and while it caused some of those turnovers, it left Detroit vulnerable when Denver matched that physicality and used it against the younger team.

Nikola Jokic had a mean triple-double with 23 points, 17 rebounds, and 15 assists in about 34 minutes. It wasn’t Jokic’s most efficient performance, going *only* 6-of-12 from the field and logging seven of Denver’s turnovers, but he still dominated while out there. Jokic’s ability to clear the glass, his setup ability as a passer, and the impressive scoring in the second half led the Nuggets to be an incredible +33 in Jokic’s 34 minutes.

But the bigger story to this game was the bounce back of Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray. Both players dominated scoring in their minutes and took advantage of the attention Jokic generated.

Porter, immediately on the heels of a poor shooting performance in Milwaukee, had 28 points on an extremely efficient 10-of-15 from the field and 6-of-7 from three-point range. He shot the ball with confidence and little hesitation, playing the aggressive brand of scoring that the Nuggets need from him when the going gets tough. Porter found opportunities all over the floor and made the Pistons pay for leaving him open at all times.

Murray wasn’t quite as efficient, but his 31 points and 4 assists on 10-of-22 from the field and 5-of-9 for three were certainly a welcome addition. The Pistons deployed Ausar Thompson, their physical and athletic ace defender, on Murray for most of the evening, and Murray navigated that ball pressure well, ultimately using screens to get free and hit some important three-pointers.

In addition to those three, Christian Braun and Zeke Nnaji played a role. Braun had 23 points on 10-of-14 from the field of his own, making two first quarter three-pointers and driving hard to the rim for the rest of the night. His defense on Cade Cunningham was also pretty great, with Cunningham going for 11 points on 12 shots and appearing uncomfortable for most of the evening.

Nnaji started in place of Aaron Gordon, who rested his ailing calf on the second night of a back-to-back. Nnaji played just 21 minutes tonight, but the Nuggets were a +27 in those minutes as he hit both of his three-pointers, grabbed some offensive rebounds, and played tremendous rotation defense all night.

Denver’s entire bench was a negative in the plus-minus tonight, partially due to garbage time. It didn’t ultimately matter though because Denver’s starters were simply too good. They handled the pressure, rattled the Pistons, and made up for Thursday’s subpar performance with an exceptional bounce back.

Road Warriors

On this four-game road trip, the Nuggets are now 2-1 in their first three games, having won handily against the Indiana Pacers, lost comfortably vs the Milwaukee Bucks, and dominating vs the Detroit Pistons. All three are playoff teams, and while none are in that higher tier of playoff contender, these are still important victories for Denver.

With their 19th road win, Nuggets now have the fourth most road wins in the entire NBA behind the Boston Celtics (24), Oklahoma City Thunder (22), and Cleveland Cavaliers (21). Some teams dominate at home, protecting their home court and using that momentum provided by the crowd to their advantage. Some teams love going on the road and getting away from home, finding it easier to focus on basketball and avoid some distractions.

Interestingly, the Nuggets are on pace to tie their record for most road wins (25) in franchise history. That was set back in 2021-22, you know, the year when Murray didn’t play and Porter played just nine games. An odd stat to be clear.

Still, the Nuggets are playing good basketball on the road this season. They’re 19-12 on the year and have 10 road games left. If they go 7-3, they will set the road record. That’s unlikely given their schedule, but Michael Malone can dream.

All the Nuggets have to do to finish up their current road trip is face the defending champion Boston Celtics at TD Garden. Good luck!

Final Rotations