The Denver Nuggets season is finally underway and the new year started with a bang as Denver picked up a huge road victory beating the Los Angeles Clippers 107-98 to begin the season 1-0. Without further ado, I give you the good, bad and ugly from Denver’s first game of the season.
The Good – Successful opening day
Starting out the year with a win on the road is a great way to begin the 2018-19 season, but even better is coming away victorious in nail-biting fashion. That was a game that Denver would have most likely lost last year, but they found a way to come away with a big win. Still, that was not the only reason that opening night was a great day. At shootaround the morning before Denver took on the Clippers, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone was awarded a two-year contract extension from Denver’s ownership group.
Denver coach Michael Malone's contract extension adds two years onto his current deal, which was entering its final season, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 17, 2018
Although Malone has not made the postseason in his time with Denver, he has improved in every season that he has been there. He took over in 2015 after Denver went 30-52. From there he had 33 wins in season one, 40 in season two and 46 last season. Malone has changed the culture, made the team fun again. He has challenged his players to get the best of him and the front office decided to reward him for his accomplishments. Getting something done before the season officially began with Malone and then going out and winning in a hard fought game on the road equates to a very successful day.
The Bad – Millsap’ offense leave fans upset
It would not be crazy to say that the absence of Paul Millsap last season was one of the biggest reasons that Denver did not make the post season. He is a savvy veteran and a four-time All-Star that makes players around him better. He was also brought to be the defensive anchor for a team that does not have a defensive identity. Still, being a four-time All-Star comes with expectations and offensively, Millsap does not appear to be the same as he once was…for now.
Fans have been calling for Millsap to do more on offense for the Nuggets. He finished last season struggling on the offensive end and also was not stellar as a scorer in his 2018-19 debut. Millsap finished the night going 1-7 from the field, but he managed to come up with 11 points on the night after going 9-12 from the free-throw line to finish off his double-double.
Millsap had only one field goal all night, but it came at one of the most crucial points in the game. He did not score in the ways that fans are accustomed to, but that does not take away from the impact that Millsap had on the game. Although he did not make many shots, he stayed aggressive driving to the rim,which got him to the free throw line 12 times, and he also did all of the small things to ensure that the team secured the win. He led all players in rebounds with 16 overall and played phenomenal defense throughout the game.
Denver’s offense is their biggest strength and hopefully things turn around for Millsap on that end of the floor. If he can become a positive offensive player, it will make Denver that much more dangerous of a team, but with Millsap impacting the game in as many ways as he did against the Clippers, there should be some slack given on nights that hit jumpers are not falling.
The Ugly – Second half woes
Denver digging deep and finding a way to win a close game on the road showed their maturation as a team. During the last couple of seasons, there were so many unlucky bounces going against Denver that they became known as the team that did not finish games. On Wednesday night, however, things went in the opposite direction and they managed to win despite luck not bending in their favor.
For as well as Denver played, there were traces of the late-game dysfunction from last season; specifically, in the second half. Denver went through a cold spell and could not find any way to score. The Nuggets scored only 15 points in the third quarter which caused the them to have to rally in the fourth. Denver shot only 29 percent from the field in the second half and needed a 23-6 run to close out the game and secure the victory. They were 14-47 from the field and could not get any shots to fall which was out of the ordinary for a team that is one of the most potent offenses in the NBA.
Denver has been trying to find other alternatives to just outscoring teams. Malone wants them to be able to win in different ways with emphasis on the defensive end. If Denver wants to continue picking up wins without needing a lucky break late in games, executing on defense late in games will have to be one of the main focuses moving forward. Even if they play strong defense, they cannot put up offensive duds in the second half as they did on Wednesday night.