Denver Nuggets keep on keeping on.
The Denver Nuggets just got another quality win against an up and coming Dallas Mavericks team. A team led by this year’s current favorite to win rookie of the year, Luka Doncic. Encouragingly, the Denver Nuggets continue to play their brand of team-oriented basketball, on both sides of the floor.
Last night’s win ensured that the Denver Nuggets continued their reign atop the Western Conference. This is extremely notable given the fact that we are now about a third of the way through the regular season.
Next, we take a closer look at the main lessons that last night’s game taught us.
The Nuggets Making Sure There Is Always Some ‘D’ in Denver.
Despite the fact that the Dallas Mavericks scored over a 100 points, (the final score was 126-118), one of the main things that stood out about last night’s game was the Denver Nuggets defense.
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Admittedly, Dallas scored more than their average of 109.9 points just a tick below the Denver Nuggets average of 110 points per game.
However, as the two teams faced off last night, the Nuggets managed to win by 8 points mainly because they were able to stop every Maverick outside of Harrison Barnes.
Last night, the Mavericks managed just 44 points in the paint compared to 64 scored by Denver. Moreover, Dallas hit (approximately) just 6 shots from mid-range.
Coach Mike Malone deserves credit, the Denver Nuggets are engaged and take defense very seriously. What’s more, the Nuggets ensured the Mavericks leading scorer, Luka Doncic had a long night.
Luka was 5 of 15 from the field and 3 of 9 from 3. The only mistake Denver made when guarding Luka was giving him the chance to shoot 10 of 12 from the free throw line.
If the Nuggets figure that part out, they likely have the formula for beating the Mavs ad infinitum (well, almost).
Lastly, as always, for Denver to be at their best, they still will need to watch further tape to make sure their defense continues to get better.
Experience
Roughly a third of the way into the season, the Denver Nuggets are exactly where they need to be. Sure, there’s the number one seed that they currently occupy.
However, more important than that, is what occupying the top spot represents. The fact that the Nuggets are playing winning basketball.
A third of the way in, is it too late for an NBA team to turn their season around? The answer to that question is an emphatic, no!
However, ideally the regular season is where an NBA team lays its foundation for the playoffs. Amassing key experience, applying a formula of winning basketball that they know they can rely on in the playoffs.
That, is exactly where the Nuggets are at. To be fair, it is where the Bucks, the Raptors, the Warriors and all of this year’s top teams reside too.
Although, Denver has proven they have what it takes to beat all those teams (aside from Milwaukee so far). Winning experience is one of the most important things this Denver team has earned. As always there is more work, learning and improvement to be achieved by this Denver Nuggets team.
Nevertheless, as far as last night, where for much of the game both teams were neck and neck. When it really counted, (towards the end of the 3rd and the 4th quarter) you saw one team (the Denver Nuggets) begin to close and the other team (the Dallas Mavericks) falter.
The experience the Nuggets team is gaining, is just one of the many reasons why the Denver Nuggets can win a championship this year.