The challenge was to take the tanking Rockets seriously. The Nuggets, with designs on securing the top seed in the West, did that and more.
Denver routed the Rockets, 133-112, on Tuesday night to improve to 44-19 and 16-15 away from Ball Arena. Their sixth win in the last seven games set the stage for a tantalizing collision at home against the second-seeded Grizzlies on Friday night.
Given what happened in Memphis this past weekend, not to mention the extra day off before seeing the Grizzlies again, rest assured the Nuggets will be better prepared.
But first, there was business to take care of.
Jamal Murray poured in an efficient and game-high 32 points, while Nikola Jokic registered his 24th triple-double of the season with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. The Nuggets improved to 24-0 in games Jokic secures the benchmark.
Denver’s offense bewildered Houston’s defense with 40 assists. It was an offensive clinic akin to the varsity squad pummeling the freshmen unit. Here’s what mattered:
Mr. 100: Let’s be clear. Jokic doesn’t hunt stats; he gets his triple-doubles within the construct of Denver’s unselfish offense. The scoring is the easy part, and the rebounding is a function of his size and strength. The passing is the fun part. Jokic likes to scramble opponents with his vision because the effect is two-fold: it’s more devastating to the defense and also serves to get his teammates involved.
He’s now got 100 triple-doubles in his career. He just turned 28 years old. Next up on the list is LeBron James, with 106. Beyond that is Jason Kidd, at No. 4 all-time, with 107. Jokic may be in fourth place all-time once this season is over.
Murray’s bounceback: In the wake of Sunday’s overtime thriller over the Clippers, the only thing that really mattered was Murray’s health. He played 41 minutes, battling through lower back pain that hampered him as the game dragged on. Though he was questionable ahead of Tuesday’s game, the first half put to rest any doubts about his health.
Murray looked spry, confident and athletic in diving on the floor for loose balls, sprinting in transition and drilling four first-half 3-pointers. He scored at all three levels, flashing in the paint, connecting from the mid-range and hitting comfortably from outside. A plus-24 in the first half, Murray was the leading scorer while his counterpart, Jokic, was content playing sidekick. (Relevant: As long as Denver wins, Jokic is always content playing sidekick).
Perhaps picking up where he left off against Los Angeles, Michael Porter Jr. was devastating from outside, too. His three early 3-pointers underscored what’s been the best 3-point shooting team in the NBA for most of the season.
Bench progress: The early returns on Denver’s deadline acquisitions have been relatively underwhelming. Reggie Jackson hasn’t found much in the way of his own offense, and neither has Thomas Bryant. As hard as he plays, it still looks like the Nuggets are trying to find Bryant’s comfort zone.
But when the bench unit is Jackson, Bruce Brown, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Vlatko Cancar and Bryant, as can happen when Murray’s in rhythm and plays for prolonged stretches, there’s still an element of playmaking that needs to be established. Jackson’s challenge over the final 19 games will be to forge an identity among that group. He ended with nine points and eight assists, though the game was out of hand for the entire fourth quarter. When the offense isn’t a given, transition defense can serve as the start of easy baskets.
It’s worth noting, too, that the longer that unit struggles, the more coach Michael Malone will have to consider plugging in rookie Christian Braun and assessing his playoff utility. Braun is a plug-and-play guy who, while not a creator, is an athletic defender at least as viable as Cancar.
_____
