The young Denver Nuggets bench gives the team a spark against Pacers

The success and heart that this depleted roster is playing with should bolster so much confidence for Denver Nuggets fans. The team is fighting hard and everyone is stepping up and were ready to take on bigger roles with the injury to Michael Porter Jr. and of course Nikola Jokic’s suspension from his altercation against Markieff Morris.

With Nikola Jokic missing the game against the Indiana Pacers due to his one-game suspension, it put added pressure on the backup big men and forwards.

This was not the best game to be missing the MVP and interior force going up against the highly skilled pair of Domatas Sabonis and Myles Turner. Michael Malone gave everyone on the roster an opportunity to make an impact, playing ten players in the first quarter alone.

With the Nuggets playing with more switch-able lineups, the Pacers seemed to be on their heels and hustled back to defend instead of going after rebounds. This helped them not really miss Jokic’s presence on the glass, but the Pacers really wanted to slow the game down and force the offense to score in the half court.

The Nuggets have the ninth-best transition offense in the league. However, most of that damage is done with Nikola Jokic and his ability to start the offense with his outlet passes or having him run the break himself.

The lineups they were running allowed the team to switch everything still and even get their own favorable matchups on the offensive end. With the league being so willing to go switch hunting, the Nuggets have multiple lineups where everyone can defend and cover shooters on the perimeter.

One of the brightest spots on the night had to be the play of Will Barton, he dropped 30 points on an efficient 57.9 percent from the field. He had it going at all three levels of the floor, was making crazy shots in the lane and creating for his teammates. Barton stepped up as the team’s first option and did not disappoint Nuggets fans, getting clutch buckets that ended up sealing the game.

There were a plethora of highlights including a 30-point game, some of the most mature rookie play that I have seen in a long time, a career-high and some intense defense that the Nuggets needed up until the final buzzer sounded.

This article runs through detailed scouting reports on Will Barton, Bones Hyland, Zeke Nnaji, and P.J. Dozier.