Denver Nuggets: Dr. Jekyll, Mr. Hyde, The Who and 2018-19’s squad

The Denver Nuggets raced to a 9-1 start, before proceeding to drop six of their next seven games. Who are the 2018-19 Nuggets?

The timeless question from the band The Who appropriately grills the 2018-19 Denver Nuggets. The inquiry hits home for this year’s team: Who are you?

Who are you, 2018-19 Denver Nuggets? Are you the 9-1 squad America briefly fell in love with? Or are you the junior varsity team that couldn’t hold a 17-point lead Monday in Milwaukee?

Are you the Golden State Warriors’ worst nightmare, dealing their lone loss within the defending champs’ 10-1 start? Or are you home-court losers to the unsteady Brooklyn Nets?

Per the Denver Post, Jamal Murray says the Nuggets are close to proficient, even during this rough stretch:

"“We are,” Jamal Murray said. “We can all see it, we can all feel it. I really think we lost one game this season, all the other games we dropped ourselves in terms of being disciplined, in terms of effort. We were right there. It’s been close games until the end.”"

The Nuggets are close. They are close to the playoffs, and close to regaining their early touch. They even lose games in close fashion. Everything is close.

How often has the word “close” been used to describe Denver? Nuggets fans suffered back-to-back ninth-place finishes…by a combined two games over two years. Both years, they were close. Has any fanbase suffered more recent “closeness” than Mile High faithful?

Right now, close misses comprise Denver’s unfortunate “Who are you?” identity. It’s been this way for awhile. If “close” continues, Denver will soon have a second identity — a team with very few fans.

Greatness awaits the early-season version of the Denver Nuggets. The “who are you?” question can be answered with confidence. The identity could even be a championship contender.

But alas, not yet. Denver still blows 17-point leads on the road in Milwaukee. They still lose trap games at home to the Brooklyn Nets. Perhaps the question, “Who are you?” isn’t answered simply. The Nuggets may embody an entirely different scenario.

In Robert Louis Stevenson’s book Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the main character faces a strange dilemma. By day, he is a kind-hearted doctor (Dr. Jekyll). At night, he transforms into everything evil about humanity (Mr. Hyde).

The dude had a strange case of split personalities, not entirely unlike the 2018-19 Denver Nuggets.

Because in the early going, they played with poise and confidence. They attacked defensively, while maintaining a well-balanced offensive. They even beat the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics. Consider this Dr. Jekyll-mode for the Nuggets.

Recently, Denver has shown a lack of confidence. The inability to close out games is back, stronger than ever. Toughness has worn thin. Consider this the Nuggets’ version of Mr. Hyde.

Per the Denver Post, Nuggets head coach Mike Malone spoke to a similar problem following Monday’s loss to the Milwaukee Bucks:

"“We had some great looks that didn’t go down, in-and-out. But again, turnovers, lack of rebounding was I think probably the two biggest reasons we were not able to come away with this win tonight.”"

Malone sees positive attributes in several performances, but understands Denver is dropping winnable games:

"“No moral victories, we gotta start winning these games, but I do like the fact that our guys competed,” Malone said."

At the end of Stevenson’s novel, the evil Mr. Hyde persona becomes too much. His half overtakes the good Dr. Jekyll, and forces the main character into a tragic death.

The 2018-19 Nuggets must take note. Mr. Hyde-like play could easily spell doom. Poor habits, lack of toughness, and inability to close games will result in yet another “close” playoff miss for Denver. How much more can Nuggets fans take?