The Nuggets lost a close one tonight in Oklahoma City on a bad call to end the game. While they put themselves in a position to lose, the Nuggets overall keep getting closer and closer to what we expected them to look like this season.
OKC Center and gargantuan, Steven Adams, was not in the rotation tonight, so the Nuggets had a chance to play small and try to play with fellow Western playoff seat contender in their own conference. Still playing was defensive guru Roberson, Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, and Paul George- more than a handful for this road worn Nuggets team in OKC tonight.
With the start of this game one could only wonder, who is going to be the one on this Denver team to step up tonight?
Malone began the pre-game conference this week musing on the difference which this year’s chemistry in the locker room has made- of the “next man up” philosophy.
I asked Michael Malone about the Nuggets' comradery. pic.twitter.com/ucj9ku07Fi
— Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) December 18, 2017
As he would on any night, Russell Westbrook strapping them up across from your bench is as intimidating as an athlete as you can come across in all of sports. Although Westbrook put up a contended 38 points tonight, the newest Denver addition (brought up from the G-League) could not have done a better job following up his shut out, defensive performance against New Orleans Friday. 2 way player Torrey Craig put up a new career high 14 points tonight as he continued to make a name for himself amongst the Denver hopeful as our future lock down defensive ace. (Denver’s new Champ Bailey, if you will, for our Bronco fans that are looking for a ray of sunshine here in Denver sportsville.)
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In what ended up being a low scoring game, the Nuggets allowed the Thunder to surge out to start the game with 32 points on the board. Although OKC had a quick start, both teams throughout the game stood flat footed and allowed for individual one-on-ones to take play in the place of offensive for the most of both halves. It wasn’t until half way through the fourth that Denver rallied through a couple of 11-1 scoring bursts to eventually tie the game going into the fourth.
Lyles, once again, showed tonight for the Nuggets. The assurance of Lyles pleads the question in what is shaping to be no longer an IF, but rather a WHEN; when will Lyles start to get starting minutes over Chandler and Faried? The Nuggets were without Mudiay tonight due to an ankle injury, so one would figure the offense/defensive would boost without him being in play. This was not the case.
Gary Harris went down in a scary fall half way through the third when he went up for an offensive rebound and cracked down hard on the back of his skull; medical staff came out and Altitude went to commercial. The overall feeling of the game was that this was going to be one of the lowest scoring games of the year, regardless of who won. The only real highlight of the game was Torrey Craig and the defensive play he brought to the Nuggets. Beyond his defense, Torrey went 3-3 from the three point line and 5-5 from the field.
After the Nuggets went on a couple 11-1 point runs, they found themselves in the lead at the most by half a few times in the second half. Jokic ended up folding up again and twisting his own injured ankle himself to start the third, if only to rub it off and walk to the sideline.
Tonight’s game came down to the wire and ended on a questionable call to end the game with free throws. Nuggets lose, 94-95, to Oklahoma City. The Nuggets return home Wednesday to the Pepsi Center to face