Denver Nuggets: 4 Notable trends in Denver’s Game 1 win
By James Siegle
The Denver Nuggets rode the Jamal Murray-Nikola Jokic two-man game to a hard-fought 135-125 overtime win over the Utah Jazz in the NBA playoffs.
The Denver Nuggets and Utah Jazz were slated for Monday’s 1:30 PM ET start time, which is widely considered the NBA playoffs’ “boring game.” It appears no one informed the teams of this.
The opening game of the Nuggets-Jazz series included a 57-point performance, multiple clutch moments in the fourth quarter, and the electric two-man game of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, as the Nuggets outlasted the Utah Jazz 135-125 in overtime and took a 1-0 series lead.
While the thrill-factor of this neck-and-neck affair stole the storyline, several notable stats point to adjustments for Game 2, as each team will assess its situation and prepare for the next contest.
Let’s examine the trends that quietly shaped Game 1 amidst the chaos, and break down the numbers upon which each team will form their respective Game 2 adjustments:
Jamal Murray-Nikola Jokic two-man game:
Most fans are aware of the effectiveness found in the Jamal Murray-Nikola Jokic two-man game, but this impact reached a new peak Monday, as Murray and Jokic finished with 36 and 29 points, respectively.
Once Murray checked into the game with 5:53 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Jokic-Murray tandem combined for 30 points on 11-of-15 shooting in the final 11 minutes of play, erasing a small deficit before helping the Nuggets pull away in overtime.
There was little debate regarding shots down the stretch, as 16 of Denver’s final 18 field goal attempts came from either Murray or Jokic. Denver knew where its offense must flow and placed the ball in the hands of its stars late in the game.
Nuggets fans should be encouraged to see the Jokic-Murray two-man game rise to meet the challenges Game 1 presented, as there’s little more the duo could have accomplished offensively down the stretch. Meanwhile, Utah will likely focus its attention on pick-and-roll defense in preparation for Game 2, as they had no answer for Denver’s superstar tandem.