The Denver Nuggets went into San Antonio the day after Christmas for their only game of the week with the hopes of getting back to their winnings ways, but ultimately fell 111-103 as they lost control of the game late.
There was a lot to digest from the Nuggets second-straight loss, so here are five takeaways from Denver’s 11th loss of the 2018-19 season.
Jamal Murray’s shooting struggles
Jamal Murray has began his first three seasons with a shooting slump, but it has never lasted this long before.
Denver has now completed 32 games and are nearly 40 percent of the way through the 2018-19 NBA season and Murray is still shooting an abysmal 41.8 percent from the field and an even more surprising 28.4 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. The closer you look at the numbers, the more depressing the narrative begins to unfold. On all catch and shoot opportunities, Murray is shooting just 33.3 percent according to Synergy data including just 31.3 percent on unguarded catch-and-shoot opportunities. Even worse is that he is hitting just 35.6 percent of all jump shots according to Synergy data. Murray, who was hailed as a sniper coming out of the University of Kentucky, has failed to live up to the hype so far.
That story continued in San Antonio against the Spurs as Murray shot an atrocious 4-of-19 from the field including going 1-of-8 from beyond the 3-point line. Murray finished with just nine points and was a game-low -20 in raw plus/minus. Murray was largely the worst player on the floor for the majority of his 27 minutes and, without him playing well, the Nuggets injuries were too much to overcome.
Nikola Jokic not getting enough help
There was no one more frustrated with the way the game was going than Jokic. He had seven first-half assists, but that number could have easily been in the double digits in the first two quarters if his teammates were able to convert the open looks that Jokic created for them.
By the time the third quarter rolled around, Jokic frustration was reaching its boiling point. He was viscerally reacting each time a teammate failed to convert a great look at a layup or missed a wide-open jump shot. Jokic’s passing was phenomenal against the Spurs, but Denver lacked the weapons on Wednesday night to exploit the oppurtinutes Jokic created.
A big reason why Jokic’s passing was so impactful was because the Spurs were double- or triple-teaming him every time he touched the ball which meant that there was always an open teammate for Jokic to find. Unfortunately, the quartet of Trey Lyles, Malik Beasley, Monte Morris,and Murray shot just 19-of-59 combined from the field and combined to shoot 8-of-28 from the 3-point line. That is just not enough production alongside Jokic to get the job done with so many injuries depleting the roster.
Juancho Hernangomez flashes his potential
The lone bright spot was the play of Juancho Hernangomez, who was impacting the game on both ends of the floor and doing much more than just spotting up as a jump shooter.
When people think about Hernangomez, the first thought is usually to his picture-perfect jump shot, but when watching his performance against the Spurs, it became clear that there is much more to Hernangomez than just a jumper. He led the Nuggets with six free throws attempted as he continued attacking the basket and drawing fouls. He was able to hit 3-pointers as usual, but he was hitting a much more diverse array of jump shots. He had his typical catch-and-shoot looks, but also threw in an escape dribble, a pull-up, and was also showcased a newfound ability to attack closeouts. As a cherry on top, he was much more consistent on the defensive end of the floor and finished with a game-high 13 rebounds.
Overall, Hernangomez finished with a career-high tying 27 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and 6-of-7 from the 3-point line to go with 13 rebounds and a single assist in 35 minutes as the Nuggets starting small forward.
The more that Hernangomez plays, the more comfortable he is becoming and as he becomes more comfortable he becomes, the more weaponized his skill set becomes. If he can defend at a league-average level, rebound with tenacity, drain 3-pointers and then attack closeouts when teams try to run him off the line, he is going to quickly become much more of a threat than anyone expected.
Trey Lyles still looking out of place
Trey Lyles has the exact skill set that the Nuggets need right now to help alleviate pressure created by the Nuggets injury issues. He can (on paper) do pretty much anything on the offensive end of the floor — hit 3-pointers, attack closeouts, create off the dribble, and punish mismatches — but, so far, he has been unable to give Denver the boost they need.
Instead, Lyles is having one of the worst shooting season of his career by hitting only 41.9 percent of his shots and a measly 25 percent from beyond the 3-point line. He has more turnovers than assists and has also struggled mightily on the defensive end of the floor. That bad play continued in San Antonio as he shot just 1-of-5 from the field to go with some uninspiring defensive play.
The Nuggets had high hopes for Lyles this year, but so far he has been unable to deliver when the Nuggets needed him most. There is still time for him to bounce back, but once the Nuggets get fully healthy they are going to have some tough roster decisions to make. Denver essentially has 12 NBA-caliber players on their roster and can only play 10 of them for any given game and, as the season progresses, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone will likely be shortening, not elongating, his rotations. That puts Lyles in danger of losing his spot in the rotation if he does not find a way to bounce back in the very near future.
Reinforcements on the way
Before the Nuggets tipped off in San Antonio, there was another bit of good news that surfaced from shootaround.
According to Mike Singer of the Denver Post, both Gary Harris and Paul Millsap went through portions of shootaround. That update came after Malone told the media that Will Barton had also began taking part in practice, albeit in a limited role.
Simply stated, the Nuggets have reinforcements on their way and it seems that their three missing starters could all be back sooner rather than later. If you were to read the tea leaves, it seems that Harris is the closest to returning to the hardwood with Barton not too far behind him. Millsap already taking part in team activities is a big development, but there is still not firm timetable for his return. He will be continually evaluated on a week-to-week basis.
Regardless, the fact that the Nuggets are getting closer to full strength should be a big confidence booster for the Denver roster and it should also scare the rest of the NBA.