Preview: Nuggets look to clinch season series against the Utah Jazz
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Following a shellacking over Julius Randle and the New York Knicks on Wednesday, the shorthanded Nuggets next have eyes on the Utah Jazz. Denver will be in Salt Lake City for the only time this year (regular season at least); both prior meetings took place in the Mile High City, with Utah taking the first matchup on January 17th and the Nuggets winning a few weeks later.
This game had been circled on many calendars all season long, and for good reason: a prime time matchup between the two teams involved in perhaps the greatest first round series in recent memory, two star guards who can shoot lights out in Donovan Mitchell and Jamal Murray, a battle between the best center in the league and the best defensive player in the league, all at the end of the season with playoff implications on the line.
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The Clippers and Nuggets have become appointment viewing whenever they play each other. The two teams had another dramatic battle, but the home team came up short for the third time this season as L.A. lost 110-104.
Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. were the game’s leading scorers with 30 and 25 points. The Clippers had five players in double figures, but Paul George and Kawhi Leonard combined for only 36, their star power not enough to withstand Jokic’s.
The last time these two teams met, the Nuggets went up 13 in the first quarter and the Clippers spent the whole game having to battle back. On Saturday, the Clippers began the game with a much better effort, thanks mostly in part to the return of Leonard for the first time in 13 days. Leonard scored or assisted on four of the team’s first five buckets as L.A. started 7-of-7 from the field. He looked wonderful, making an impact with his scoring and his off-ball movement while making the r
Recap: Nuggets ride MVP performance from Nikola Jokic to 110-104 win over Clippers
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Sometimes the game of basketball is as simple as which team has the best two players on the floor. Tonight, as the media romanticized the return of Kawhi Leonard alongside Paul George and continued the mental gymnastics to peg anyone else besides Nikola Jokic as MVP, it was the duo of Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. which bested the LA Clippers by a score of 110-104.
On national TV (and in front of Jamal Murray!) Jokic put on a masterclass, putting up a cool 30 point, 14 rebound, seven assist performance. He took over the game in the third quarter as he gutted Ivica Zubac like a fish on his way to 18 points in the third, scoring in every way imaginable: layup, tomahawk dunk, three, Sombor Shuffle. If it wasn’t glaringly obvious before tonight, Jokic will be taking home some hardware this season - and hopefully not just the MVP trophy.
Recap: Denver loses Will Barton and the game 118-97 in Golden State
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The Denver Nuggets faced the Golden State Warriors in a rematch witnessing Denver lose the game and their star Jamal Murray. Friday night mirrored that matchup very well. Denver gets blown out and loses another key piece as Will Barton exited with a hamstring injury.
Golden State welcomed fans inside the arena for the first time this season facilitating a hot start as Mulder hit the first three of the game. Michael Porter Jr. answered with a three of his own to put the Nuggets on the board. Within one minute of the game, another terrifying sight for Nuggets fans occurred. Will Barton limped off the court with an apparent right hamstring injury. Following Will Barton’s absence, Golden State hit two straight shots responded by an Aaron Gordon three as the shot clock expired.
Preview: Nuggets labor on with matchup against Rockets
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The hits just don’t stop coming to the 2020-21 Denver Nuggets.
The last time the Nuggets played the Warriors, their star point guard Jamal Murray suffered a torn ACL in the closing minute of the game. The injury cost Murray not just the remainder of this season, but will likely cause him to miss most of the next season as well. Last night, in the first minute of the game, Nuggets swingman Will Barton pulled up limping, falling to the court and holding his right hamstring.
Love him or hate him, there is no denying that Barton fills a key role for the Nuggets. With his ability to initiate the offense, shoot, defend and rebound, he is a jack-of-all-trades for Denver, filling in wherever the coaching staff needs him. Hopefully the injury is nothing serious, but with how this season is progressing, I’m prepared for bad news.