Two Western Conference juggernauts were headed for a collision course on Thursday in the first week of NBA action this season. With all the day’s games in the books, the OKC Thunder were able to secure their first win of the season against Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and a championship Denver Nuggets team.
The final score (102-87) was due to several factors, most notably the performances of Chet Holmgren (21 points, 9-16 FG) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (24 points, 10-22 FG), who carried the Thunder offensively. Aaron Wiggins was the leading bench scorer with 13 points and 5 rebounds in 17 minutes.
The Denver Nuggets fought valiantly down the stretch but they just couldn’t keep up with the Thunder’s scoring pace. Nikola Jokic led his team with a 16-point triple-double including 11 rebounds and 10 assists on 6-13 shooting. As usual, he was orchestrating everything for his team and was the only reason they were able to keep the game remotely competitive. Christian Braud had an impressive showing as a starter for the group, dropping a team-high 16 points and 7 rebounds (8-15 FG).
As the season continues, both of these teams will settle into their regular playstyles. For the Nuggets, it means playing through Jokic and letting everything else follow. For the Thunder, it involves great attention to detail in order to ensure they can play up to their maximum potential. Tonight, we saw a Thunder team at the top of their game, and several key factors, in particular, painted a very interesting picture of the West.
The Thunder Activated Lockdown Defense
The Thunder had the NBA’s third-best defense rating last season at 116.5 and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. Between guys like Shai, Chet Holmgren, Aaron Wiggins, and Alex Caruso, the Thunder have a lot of height and length which can make it difficult for opponents to score.
Tonight, the Thunder continued their strong defensive efforts. They finished with 13 blocks in the game and held the Nuggets to 87 points on 35.4% shooting. The Nuggets shot 7-39 from downtown, or just 17.9% from three. Somehow, Nikola Jokic was held to just 26 points and was -9 in 35 minutes.
As a young team with length, size, and athleticism, the Thunder have a matchup for basically every scenario and we saw their versatility first-hand against a Nuggets team that tried and failed various different lineups throughout the night.
The bottom line is that if the Nuggets can maintain defensive play like this, it could put them in a position to lead the Western Conference just like they did last season when they secured the top spot in the standings.
Struggles Continue For Jamal Murray
One big storyline for the Nuggets is the increasingly concerning play of their star point guard, Jamal Murray. At his best, Murray is a borderline All-Star who is good for 20-25 a night for the Denver Nuggets. But ever since winning the title in 2023, Murray has struggled to play up to his standards.
In the Nuggets season opener tonight, he scored just 12 points on 28.6% shooting and 33.3% shooting from three. He was -2 in 36 minutes and committed two ugly turnovers. It’s a similar stat line to the Paris Olympic Games this summer, where he averaged 6.0 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.3 turnovers per game on 29% shooting from the field.
The NBA point guard is a major contributor for the Nuggets and his influence in the backcourt has worked in their favor for many years now. Just last season, Murray was playing at an All-Star level with averages of 21.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game.
Needless to say, the man is in a serious shooting slump that goes back into the middle of the summer. If he can’t turn it around soon and return to his previous form on the court, it could have disastrous results for the Nuggets as we saw tonight when they had no chance to compete against the best team in the West.
Crucial Bench Scoring For The Thunder
Depth may not be everything in the NBA but it’s important for a team looking to compete for the title. Last season, we saw the Thunder lose in the playoffs due to their thin rotation but we saw signs of life in the second unit today, most notably from Aaron Wiggins.
Wiggins led all bench scores with 15 points on 7-9 shooting, and he was joined by Qusmane Dieng and Cason Wallace who combined for 10 points. Alex Caruso didn’t score tonight but his fingerprints were all over the game with 6 rebounds and 4 assists.
Comparatively, the Nuggets barely got anything from their reserves. Russell Westbrook (their newest acquisition) shot 20% from the field for 6 points while Peyton Watson had just 2 points on 14.3% shooting. After letting go of Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in back-to-back summers, the Nuggets are clearly lacking the same depth they used to have and it could cost them greatly this season.
The truth is that the Thunder are so far ahead of the curve right now and they’ve got everything a young championship team needs to make history in the playoffs. Without a single championship win since 1979, the Thunder haven’t seen ultimate playoff success in decades but with the way things are trending, it shouldn’t be long before they finally break the streak.
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