The Denver Nuggets sent a message to the Western Conference with a one-sided home 129-93 win over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night. The masterful duo of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray pulverized the Rockets’ defense while Houston’s offense sputtered behind a quiet Kevin Durant (11 PTS, 5-8 FG) performance.
Jokic and Murray lead the Nuggets in almost every game, but tonight saw great nights from almost everyone. All players seemed to be in lockstep defensively, with even players having bad offensive nights proving to be ultra-impactful on defense. Their two-way brilliance with their 17-32 shooting from three made it impossible for the Rockets to catch up.
Let’s take a look at how the Nuggets players fared in this important West clash, which dropped the Rockets to No. 4 in the West and brought the Nuggets within half a game of the No. 3-seeded LA Lakers.
Nikola Jokic: A
Game Stats: 16 PTS, 12 REB, 13 AST, 5 STL, 1 BLK, 5 TOV, 6-12 FG, 0-2 3PT, 4-5 FT, 30 MIN
Jokic had another MVP-caliber performance against the Rockets. He didn’t need to impact the game as a scorer, so he masterfully empowered his teammates to rain hell on Houston all night. Jokic’s pinpoint passing is one of the keys behind their excellent outside shooting, while the center also played a crucial role in Denver’s 18 points off turnovers with expert cross-court passes after steals.
The Nuggets were a whopping +27 with Jokic, leaving him with the best plus/minus on the team tonight. The only reason he doesn’t get an A+ is because of his muted scoring, but it shows how he won’t chase numbers for himself if the team can without him playing selfishly.
Jamal Murray: A
Game Stats: 30 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 1 TOV, 11-21 FG, 3-4 3PT, 5-6 FT, 31 MIN
Murray added another phenomenal performance to what’s been a career season for the 29-year-old guard. Murray’s effortless scoring against the Rockets’ vaunted perimeter defense shows that there is no defense that the Canadian guard can’t break down and excel against.
His +25 rating on the night highlights his impact, as his surgical scoring leads Denver to a crucial win as the Playoffs near.
Christian Braun: A-
Game Stats: 19 PTS, 4 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 8-10 FG, 3-4 3PT, 26 MIN
After an injury-riddled season, Christian Braun is coming into his own at the perfect time. He had a very good performance tonight, playing a huge role on defense while also being the most automatic scorer on the Nuggets tonight. The Rockets had no answer for him all night.
Cameron Johnson: B+
Game Stats: 17 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 2 STL, 2 BLK, 6-9 FG, 3-5 3PT, 2-2 FT, 25 MIN
Despite criticism for not living up to the price of being traded for Michael Porter Jr., Johnson showed off how he can be more impactful in certain games. Not only did he score at will, but he was also one of the best defenders on the Nuggets tonight. His two-way skills shone bright tonight as he was part of the Nuggets frontcourt rotation that made life impossible for Durant and others.
Jonas Valanciunas: B
Game Stats: 12 PTS, 5 REB, 3 AST, 6-6 FG, 12 MIN
Instead of being an anonymous backup for Jokic, Valanciunas came in and dominated a Rockets paint which featured Alperen Sengun and Clint Capela as defenders. They had no answer for Valanciunas, who didn’t miss a single shot in his cameo appearance.
Tim Hardaway Jr.: B
Game Stats: 14 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 5-9 FG, 4-6 3PT, 1 TOV, 21 MIN
Hardaway Jr. has been known as a special scorer his entire career, but tonight showed how he’s brought more to the Nuggets than just scoring. He did go ballistic as an outside shooter tonight, but he also was a positive defender by being an active body who was disrupting the Rockets’ weak ball-handlers at the point of attack.
Bruce Brown: B-
Game Stats: 7 PTS, 1 REB, 2 AST, 2-5 FG, 1-2 3PT, 1-2 FT, 1 TOV, 20 MIN
Similar to what Hardaway provided, Brown was excellent as an on-ball defender, but his offense lagged slightly behind Hardaway. Brown is a master of playing his role to the fullest, which is what he did in the 20 minutes of action he saw, ending the night as a +17.
Spencer Jones: C+
Game Stats: 0 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 0-2 FG, 20 MIN
Jones played hard defense for the 20 minutes he was on the court, without any expectation of having a scoring impact. He did his job admirably.
Aaron Gordon: C+
Game Stats: 0 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 0-3 FG, 0-2 3PT, 22 MIN
Even though the stat sheet for Gordon looks barren, the 30-year-old forward is currently returning to full fitness after a hamstring injury. His defense on Durant was incredible, but made his offensive output a non-factor in the win.
Jalen Pickett: N/A
Game Stats: 3 PTS, 1-2 FG, 1-2 3PT, 6 MIN
Pickett was part of Denver’s garbage time rotation in the fourth quarter, making a shot and playing with the ball in his hands. The limited and uncompetitive minutes he and other garbage time players saw mean they’ll all be given an N/A.
David Roddy: N/A
Game Stats: 2 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 0-1 FG, 0-1 3PT, 2-2 FT, 6 MIN
Roddy showed he can impact the game across all facets in his six-minute run against the Rockets tonight.
Tyus Jones: N/A
Game Stats: 2 PTS, 2 AST, 1-2 FG, 0-1 3P, 8 MIN
Jones is a great backup guard option to have, joining the team as a buyout player, but he hasn’t gotten much run outside of garbage time, including tonight.
Julian Strawther: N/A
Game Stats: 6 PTS, 1 REB, 2-3 FG, 2-2 3P, 8 MIN
Strawther was the most impressive player for Denver in garbage time, but he’s also recently fallen out of the rotation as the core players are getting healthy.
Zeke Nnaji: N/A
Game Stats: 1 PT, 1 REB, 1 STL, 0-2 FG, 0-1 3P, 1-2 FTS, 1 TOV, 6 MIN
Nnaji didn’t make much of an impact in his garbage time minutes, causing the only Nuggets turnover of that period.
