3 takeaways from Nuggets’ heart-wrenching Game 4 loss

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 23: A Tissot ad is shown during the second quarter in a game between the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets in Game Four of the Western Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 23, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 23: A Tissot ad is shown during the second quarter in a game between the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets in Game Four of the Western Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 23, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA – AUGUST 23: A tribute to Kobe Bryant is displayed as the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets play during the first half of Game Four between the Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz of the first round of the playoffs at the AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 22, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (Photo by Ashley Landis-Pool/Getty Images)
LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA – AUGUST 23: A tribute to Kobe Bryant is displayed as the Utah Jazz and Denver Nuggets play during the first half of Game Four between the Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz of the first round of the playoffs at the AdventHealth Arena at the ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 22, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (Photo by Ashley Landis-Pool/Getty Images) /

Starting lineup changes

Heading into Game 4, the Nuggets revealed that they had made significant changes to the starting lineup, replacing Torrey Craig and Michael Porter Jr. with Monte Morris and Jerami Grant, respectively. On the one hand, the defense played with more energy and looked to be in-sync. In addition, Jamal Murray seemed to benefit from having another ball-handler on the floor, with there not being as much ball pressure as there was over the last two games.

On the other hand, they still couldn’t stop the Jazz from scoring. Halfway through the first quarter, Utah was on pace to score 30 points in the period (they actually finished the quarter with 33 points) and Mitchell had 9 points on 4-5 shooting from the field before any substitutions were made by Denver. The fact of the matter is that they have no players that can truly lock up Mitchell, especially while he’s in this type of zone, and they have very few answers for Jordan Clarkson or Mike Conley either.

That said, the adjustment made by Malone helped the team far more offensively than defensively, as Utah shot 57.5% from the field and 48.3% from 3-point range in Game 4. The Nuggets were able to keep pace with the Jazz throughout the first half in large part because of increased aggressiveness from Murray and Millsap. A much more engaged Nikola Jokic was a boon for the offense as well.