Denver Nuggets: Takeaways from Tuesday’s win over Dallas
The Denver Nuggets capped off a perfect 4-0 home stand with a 126-118 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night.
Despite a dazzling all-around performance from Dallas rookie phenom Luka Dončić, the Denver Nuggets were propelled by yet another MVP-caliber night from Nikola Jokić, who finished with 32 points, 16 rebounds, and 4 assists on 52 percent shooting.
In addition to Jokic’s stellar showing, Nuggets guards Jamal Murray and Monte Morris combined for Denver’s final 11 points and effectively sealed the affair.
Morris has been playing some of the most efficient basketball in the entire league, as evidenced by his league-leading 6.2 assist-to-turnover ratio. Additionally, Morris has found his shooting stroke and is now averaging almost 49 percent from the field and 45 percent from three-point range.
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Throughout the season, Morris has demonstrated his ability to take charge and run the offense at the point, while also playing to his teammates’ strengths.
Morris may not yet be a household name in the NBA, but his invaluable contributions to Denver’s success this season should be enough to consider him a candidate for the Sixth Man of the Year award.
Jamal Murray has proven to be a reliable closer
One of the most popular knocks on the Nuggets so far this season has been that they have no clear-cut superstar who can consistently close out games.
Jamal Murray’s performance against the Mavericks was a firm indictment of this claim, as the third-year guard out of Kentucky poured in 10 of the Nuggets’ 21 fourth-quarter points. Murray exuded a level of confidence in the fourth quarter that Denver fans have come to expect each and every game, as he knocked down one mid range jumper after another to put the Mavericks away for good.
Murray’s fourth-quarter scoring prowess was on full display in the Nuggets’ win over the Raptors on Sunday as he outscored Toronto by himself in the fourth, 15-14.
As Murray continues to grow and develop as a score-first guard, his clutch abilities are only growing stronger. Despite his score-first reputation, Murray’s career-high 15 assists against Dallas clearly shows his vast improvement in just about every facet of his game.
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When crunch time has arrived this season, Murray has proven that he can step up and deliver.