The Nuggets took a hard-fought loss on Monday night, falling 105-102 to the Clippers, evening up their first-round playoff series 1-1 as things head to LA. Despite the loss, there were a lot of solid positives to take out of this one. In game one, it felt like Denver was digging out of a hole all night, and stole one with some crunch time magic.
Game two, on the other hand, felt like the Nuggets dictated terms for much of the night and were in control, but tightened up down the stretch and fell victim to a Kawhi Leonard master class. Those things happen, but all in all, it’s now a best-of-5 series, and the Nuggets are going to have to steal a game on the road.
One of the bright spots from game two was the bounceback play of Michael Porter Jr. MPJ had a brutal game one, virtually disappearing for his 26 minutes, adding just 3 points and 4 rebounds on four shot attempts. He lacked energy and was eventually benched for Russell Westbrook down the stretch.
On Monday night, Porter Jr. looked like a different player, battling all night on both ends and bringing the intensity from the opening tip. Mike had 15 points and 15 rebounds on 6/11 shooting in 33 minutes. He shot with confidence and fought hard on the glass, including 6 massive offensive rebounds.
Nuggets need consistency from Porter Jr.
This was great to see after such a poor showing in game one, but this is the version of Mike that Denver needs on a nightly basis. He is too talented, has played in too many games, and frankly, makes too much money to pull a vanishing act in a playoff game. He can’t be an every-other-night kind of guy, he has to be one of the lynchpins of the offense for this to work.
There was a time when MPJ was supposed to be the “third star”, and there were hopes that someday he would even take over the burden from Jamal Murray as the main outside offensive weapon with Nikola Jokic. And while that ship seems to have sailed, they still need him to be a glorified role player at the very least.
This roster doesn’t have the depth of talent to survive another stinker from Porter Jr. He has to shoot with confidence, defend as hard as he can, and crash the boards with a purpose. The team can live with an off-shooting night or two, but he needs to keep spacing the floor and impacting the game in other ways.
Porter Jr. tweaks shoulder in late-game scrum
Down the stretch of this game, Porter Jr. pulled down a rebound and made one of his few boneheaded plays, mistakenly making an outlet pass to nobody. He tried to atone for his mistake by diving for the loose ball, and he hurt his shoulder in the process.
He was taken out of the game for the final minute and change, and said he has a joint sprain in his shoulder, but it’s “nothing too serious”. The Nuggets better hope not, because the last thing they can afford is an injury. With any luck, MPJ is back out there on Thursday night, and he can keep trending in the right direction on the court.