Following the All-Star break, the Denver Nuggets head to Dallas to take on the Mavericks. Here are 3 things to watch as they do.
It’s been a long All-Star break.
Sure, last weekend’s festivities were fun — Joe Harris topping Steph Curry in the 3-pointy contest, Hamidou Diallo dunking over Shaq in the dunk contest and my, personal favorite, Nikola Jokic throwing the ball of a very unamused LeBron James in the All-Star game.
But it’s just not the same as the basketball we’ve been spoiled with for four months now. And if you’re anything like me, you’ve been waiting (not so) patiently for the real games to start back up.
Lucky for us, Nuggets basketball is almost back. Denver takes on the Dallas Mavericks Friday, at full strength — sans Michael Porter Jr. and potentially Trey Lyles — for the first time all season.
The Nuggets sit at 39-18, good for second in the west with 25 games left to play. But Denver has the fourth toughest remaining schedule — with two games apiece against the Warriors and Thunder.
But it starts with one. Before they can look ahead, the Nuggets need to take care of business in Dallas.
Here are 3 things to watch as they try.
How does the Nuggets rotation look?
Isaiah Thomas joining the lineup causes a bit of a problem for coach Mike Malone. But what a problem to have.
The former MVP candidate played just 13 minutes in a win over Sacramento, but provided a big spark in the third quarter — finishing with eight points and two assists.
He is expected to creep into a bigger role as the season moves on — but to what extent is unknown, especially as part of an already-overperforming bench unit.
Thomas will be fighting for minutes with Monte Morris (leads the NBA in turnover to assist ratio), Malik Beasley (seventh in 3-point percentage) and Mason Plumlee (leads Nuggets regulars in defensive rating), not to mention Jauncho Hernangomez and Torrey Craig (both playing their roles very well) and Trey Lyles (underperforming this season but still a solid player).
Thomas will also run into a log jam at point guard with Morris and Jamal Murray. But IT and Murray are both capable of playing the 2-guard, so we will likely see a lot more two-point-guard lineups.
Malone has talked about keeping the rotation open game-to-game depending on how players are performing, but down the stretch it will likely start to take form.
Another moving piece will be Gary Harris, who Malone said will be returning, but on a minutes restriction after missing the past three weeks with a groin injury. Harris will also be a big addition down the stretch if he can stay healthy.
Speaking of which…
How — and how much — will Gary Harris play?
Harris hasn’t played since Jan. 30 — scoring just nine points in 34 minutes in a win over the Pelicans.
Beyond that, he’s been dealing with injuries all year. He’s missed 23 games with a couple different lower body issues.
And when he has been healthy, he hasn’t quite been himself. He hasn’t eclipsed 20 points since November and is averaging just over 11 points since the start of the New Year.
“Gary Harris has had a very un-Gary-Harris-like season because of the injuries,” Malone said before the All-Star break. “And because you’re in and you’re out, there’s no consistency.”
And while there was chatter of him returning before the All-Star break, the Nuggets decided to hold him out. And the three weeks of rest should do him well.
On a minutes restriction, he may not start Friday, but he will definitely get his chance to make an impact.
How will Luka Doncic treat his All-Star snub?
The rookie sensation out of Slovenia has had an impressive season without a doubt. He’s averaging 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists while acting as the Mavericks go-to option.
But it wasn’t quite enough to earn him a bid in the All-Star game. And unfortunately for him, there was a camera fixed on him when he got the news.
If he had made the All-Star game he would have been in fairly rare air. While 45 rookies have made the All-Star game, just two have since 2000 — Yao Ming in 2003 and Blake Griffin in 2011.
Doncic stepped it up in the six games after finding out about the snub — averaging 23.5 points, 9.1 rebounds and 7 assists per game.
Doncic was in Charlotte on All-Star Weekend, playing in the Rising Stars Challenge before competing in the Skills Challenge. Who knows if that reignited the spark?
Doncic playing normal is already hard enough to handle. If he takes it to another level, the Nuggets — and the rest of the NBA — may be in trouble.