The Nuggets defeated the Timberwolves in a critically important game on Thursday night, 100-96, and they would not have won if not for the contributions of one Devin Harris.
This isn’t hyperbole. The Nuggets offense struggled all night, with the TImberwolves slowing down the pace of the game when they were on offense and clogging the paint on defense, forcing the Nuggets to grind out possessions that frequently ended in a jump shot from the perimeter.
Harris, who was acquired via trade from the Dallas Mavericks prior to the trade deadline this season, has shot 34 percent on 3-point attempts in 24 games for the Nuggets. That’s a good rate, but it isn’t lighting the net on fire levels of efficiency. Last night however, Harris made five of his first six shots from the field, and they were all from behind the 3-point line. Those buckets helped them close out a quarter with a two for one, with Harris powering a 6-0 run on his own at the end of the first quarter.
Harris came up big at the end of the third quarter as well. After he checked in with 4:05 left, the Nuggets finished on an 11-2 run, flipping a two point deficit into a seven point lead.
It was not a beautiful game to watch last night, and if you stayed up until the end, bravo. I’ll remember the night when Devin Harris etched his name in Nuggets history with a flurry of 3-pointers that completely changed the mood of the game, energizing the Pepsi Center and giving the Nuggets the boost they needed to extend their winning streak to four games.
Here’s the highlights:
