The Nuggets were able to end their preseason with a 3-2 record. Did you miss the preseason? Never fear–you can find all of the recaps right here!
Nuggets vs. Warriors
Denver came hard out of the gates to outscore the Warriors 28-21 in the first quarter. The Nuggets kept their grip on the game but ultimately, Golden State outscored them 31-26 in the second quarter. At the half, Nuggets led the Warriors, 54-52. Coming into the third quarter, the Nuggets weren’t ready to stop and once again, they were able to give the Warriors a fight and outscored them 32-21, giving the Nuggets a 13 point lead. The Warriors came back in the fourth, fighting tooth and nail, and they were even able to outscore the Nuggets, but fell short when the Nuggets took the 108-102 win.
Nuggets: Warriors:
FG%: 44.4% 41.5%
3PT%: 46.4% 12.1%
FT: 67.6% 83.3%
Rebounds: 48 53
Nuggets vs. Lakers (Round 1)
Their second win came from the Staples Center in Los Angeles against the Lakers. It was a quality win, in which the Nuggets overcame a very slow start to get the dub. For the most part, the game went in a direction that many fans could have guessed it going. Emmanuel Mudiay struggled after playing a big game against the Warriors. He only had 6 points on 2-5 shooting with four assists and four turnovers.
Paul Millsap and Nikola Jokic both had quietly good nights, Millsap having 11 points compared to Jokic’s 16. The Joker was definitely stroking it from deep, finishing the game at 3-4 from beyond the arc. Each of their plus-minus was at +17. That’s a very high number.
Nuggets: Lakers:
FG%: 46.4% 46.3%
3PT%: 55.6% 36%
FT: 71.4% 81.5%
Rebounds: 35 46
Nuggets vs. Lakers (Round 2)
The Nuggets were without any of their starters, but in the end, it did not matter. The Nuggets were still able to prevail over the Lakers by a final score of 122-104. Thanks to a dominant performance from Jamal Murray, the Nuggets were in the drivers seat from tip off and showed how much potential their second unit has going into this new NBA season.
Trey Lyles also had a remarkable performance particularly defensively logging a nice total of four steals.The high point man on the night for Denver was actually Kenneth Faried as he logged 25 points while shooting 84.6% from the field. Denver showed great team effort and was once again showing great ball movement in their dominant win.
Nuggets: Lakers:
FG%: 53.9% 51.3%
3PT%: 41.2% 20%
FT: 70.6% 57.6%
Rebounds: 46 32
Nuggets vs. Spurs
The Nuggets were looking to battle the Spurs in order to keep a perfect preseason record as they journeyed to San Antonio to face the Spurs but they unfortunately were unable to find what they were looking for.
Both the Nuggets and Spurs started off the game with a hot hand, staying relatively even throughout the first, ending the quarter 35-32 with the Spurs on top. Going into the second quarter, the Nuggets slowed down and were once again outscored 31-22. At the half, the Spurs led the Nuggets 66-54. After the half, the Nuggets came back onto the court trying to hold the Spurs back and they did so by outscoring them 28-17 in the third–the score now 83-82 with the Spurs just barely on top. In the fourth quarter, the Spurs outscored the Nuggets 39-18, ultimately causing the Nuggets to fall to the Spurs with a score of 122-100.
Nuggets: Spurs
FG%: 40.4% 57%
3PT%: 29.6% 57.1%
FT: 76.9% 88.9%
Rebounds: 36 47
Nuggets vs. Thunder
OKC started off hot through the first, ending the quarter 25-17 over Denver. Going into the second quarter, the Nuggets picked up the pace and were able to keep up with OKC, ending the half with a score of 49-39. This ten point deficit for the Nuggets set the pace for the remainder of the game.
After the half, Denver came onto the court ready to fight and were able to end the third quarter just five points shy of where OKC sat, the score now 69-64. By the end of the fourth, the Nuggets weren’t able to pull it off and the Thunder left Denver with a winning score of 96-86.
Nuggets: Thunder:
FG%: 34.1% 42.9%
3PT%: 33.3% 39.5%
FT%: 65.4% 37.5%
Rebounds: 46 56
The season opener is Wednesday, October 18th against the Utah Jazz.