Wilson Chandler led the Nuggets with 19 points and Jusuf Nurkic posted a double-double but it wasn’t enough to overcome a second-half shooting slump as Denver went down to the Milwaukee Bucks 89-81 in Milwaukee Friday.
In their first game back after the all-star break, the Nuggets picked up right where they left off – mixing stretches of solid play with an at times stagnant and disinterested offense. The Nuggets shot just 35.7 percent from the field, and just 27 percent from three – nowhere near well enough to justify the 26 threes they jacked Friday.
Here’s Denver’s shot chart in the second half:
That’s a lot of long threes for a team with the third-worst three-point field goal percentage in the league. But stagnant offense has been a problem all season, and that’s with point guard Ty Lawson. Lawson did not play Friday because he missed practice on Wednesday and failed to notify the team, and as expected, the Nuggets struggled without him and shooting guard Arron Afflalo, who was traded Thursday.
Denver actually had a lead heading into the second half, thanks in large part to the play of Nurkic. Like the rest of the team though, the rookie couldn’t find the net in the second half, and scored all of his 11 points before the break. He also finished with 15 rebounds and three blocks.
For the Bucks, guard Khris Middleton finished with 15 points, including a perfect 5-5 from the line. Big-man John Henson added 14 points on 6-8 shooting from the field.
The Nuggets won’t have much time to worry over this one: they take on the Oklahoma City Thunder Sunday in Oklahoma City. Tip off is set for 5 p.m. Mountain time.
Zach Marburger is a staff writer for Mile High Sports. He can be reached via email at zmarburger@milehighsports.com or on Twitter @BurchBurger.