The Nuggets were lifted to their fourth straight win last night by what was far and away Jamal Murray’s best game of the season so far as he dropped 45 points on just 26 shots. He looked like vintage Jamal Murray, and that was the player that the Nuggets paid all that money for when they re-upped him on a 4 year max extension. He made threes, got to the rim, and also cooked from the mid-range. It was a complete offensive game from him, and you’d struggle trying to pick holes in it. Because of him, no other starter cracked the 30 minute mark and they will be well rested coming in to the second night of a back-to-back.
It was also a fairly good defensive performance from the good guys, as it was their third munder of the season. Tonight, they face a more lethal team. One that is surging, rather than missing its best player. Right now, the Nuggets are surging and playing some of their best basketball of the season, at least record wise, and the Rockets are on a 56 win pace. With Ball Arena as the venue tonight, it rests on Nikola Jokic and the rest of the Nuggets to defend their home court against the young, spunky team.
The Essentials
Who: Denver Nuggets (24-15) vs Houston Rockets (26-12)
When: 7:00 PM MST
Where: Ball Arena, Denver, CO.
How to watch/listen: NBA League Pass, Altitude TV where available, Altitude+, Altitude Radio 92.5FM, hop the fence and tell them you’re Jerry Garcia’s roadie.
The Matchup
| Position | Nuggets | Rockets | Advantage |
| PG | Russell Westbrook | Fred VanVleet | Nuggets |
| SG | Jamal Murray | Jalen Green | Nuggets |
| SF | Christian Braun | Amen Thompson | Rockets |
| PF | Michael Porter Jr. | Dillon Brooks | Nuggets |
| C | Nikola Jokic | Alperen Sengun | Nuggets |
| Bench | Aaron Gordon, Julian Strawther, Peyton Watson, Jalen Pickett, DeAndre Jordan | Cam Whitmore, Jae’Sean Tate, Steven Adams, Aaron Holiday, Jeff Green, Reed Sheppard | Even |
Injury report: Vlatko Cancar – out (knee), DaRon Holmes II – out (achilles), PJ Hall – out (G-League), Spencer Jones – out (G-League); Tari Eason – doubtful (lower leg), Jabari Smith Jr. – out (hand), Jock Landale – out (personal)
The Three Things
The Thing To Watch For: Jamal Murray Continuing To Play Well
This season has been one to largely forget for Jamal Murray, but after early season woes, he has mostly bounced back to form. At least what he was last regular season. Since December 1st, he has averaged 21 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game, and 5.9 assists per game on 47% from the field, 43% from deep, and 91% from the line. Having another dynamic scorer next to Nikola Jokic has helped a lot in terms of lessening his offensive load, and it’s important that the Nuggets are able to give Jokic his possessions off. If Jamal Murray can continue to carry momentum from yesterday into today’s game it will help the team in every facet imaginable.
The Thing To Remember: The Starting Lineup Has To Settle
I wrote about the starting lineup yesterday assuming that Aaron Gordon would resume his role as the starting power forward, and while that is definitely going to happen eventually, it has not happened yet. Instead we saw him come off the bench for the second consecutive game, and until he resumes starting – the lineup of Russell Westbrook, Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Michael Porter Jr., and Nikola Jokic is the starting lineup. Aaron Gordon will sub back in to it at some point, and it’ll be important to keep an eye between Christian Braun and Russell Westbrook to see who shows they’ve earned that fifth spot more.
The Thing To Listen To: Islander by Derina Harvey Band
