Denver Nuggets vs Detroit Pistons: main takeaways

The Denver Nuggets suffered another one of their few blowout losses of the 2018-19 NBA season. They lost by 26 points behind poor performances during the 2nd and final quarter.

As always, our concern is what Monday night’s loss means for the Denver Nuggets as far as the big (playoff) picture, going forward. Did Denver simply miss Paul Millsap? Was Denver merely fatigued having played three games within a span of four days? Or does Denver’s latest performance hint at deeper problems? Below, we take a closer look at Monday’s game and what any potential ramifications might be.

Rebounding, Threes And Defense

Given the almost 30 point gap in points scored between both teams, it’s fair to say that Denver was soundly beaten. Having studied every game that the Nuggets have played, Monday night’s stands out as a being out of the norm.

The first thing that stands out as an anomaly is Denver’s rebounding. Denver is currently ranked as the 9th best rebounding team in the NBA with an average of 55.2 rebounds per game. However, the Nuggets only grabbed 47 rebounds last night and were out-rebounded by 10 overall and on both sides of the ball.

Interestingly, Detroit normally ranks below Denver (12th) in rebounding, with an average of 54.9 rebounds per game.

Mason Plumlee was the only player for the Nuggets to record double digits rebounds. Meanwhile no other player for Denver would grab more than 4 rebounds. On the opposite end Andre Drummond, Zaza Pachulia, Stanley Johnson and Blake Griffin would grab 34 rebounds between them.

However, rebounding would prove to be just the beginning of problems for Denver. As mentioned in a recent article, Gregg Popovich is right, three pointers are a big part of today’s game. Nevertheless, arguably, the ability to guard the three is more important than being able to make them. On Monday, the Nuggets would struggle from 3 point land on both sides of the floor.

On one hand, Denver would shoot 9 of 28 from 3 (32.1%). Monte Morris (40%), Will Barton (50%) and Malik Beasley (60%) would be the only Nuggets to shoot well from deep, as the rest of the team would only add three more made 3 pointers.

On the other hand Detroit would make 16 of 37 3’s (43.2%). Bruce Brown (0 for 3) and Khyri Thomas (0 for 1) were the only Pistons that struggled from deep. The Pistons are normally the NBA’s second worst 3 point shooting team. However, between their ball movement (Detroit would end up with 32 assists to Denver’s 28) and Denver’s poor rotations on defense, Detroit got plenty of good shots from three point land.

Last but by no means least was Detroit’s defense. Once again Denver lost the rebounding war last night but nowhere was this more apparent than on the defensive glass. On that end, the Denver Nuggets got out-rebounded by 15. Moreover, Denver’s block party was outdone by Detroit’s near double-digit 8 blocks, compared to just 3 for Denver.

Nevertheless, one of the factors that caused Denver some of the most damage was their (14) turnovers, which the Pistons turned into a huge 26 points. Looked at a different way, those 26 points were the difference in the ball game.

In summary, Denver lost on Monday night because, they guarded the three point shot poorly, were out-rebounded, and turned the ball over too many times. Although the Nuggets have the 2nd best offense in the NBA, by itself, that offense isn’t enough to win games in the NBA. Denver simply has to bring maximum effort on both sides of the floor for them to be able to close out what truly has been an amazing season in a fitting manner.