The Denver Nuggets can't catch a break. In their double-OT loss to the Knicks, the third in a row and the season's longest losing streak, the injury bug that has plagued Denver this season reared its ugly head again, sending two more players back to the locker room. They may lose them to an extended absence.
First, it was Spencer Jones, who clashed heads with Karl-Anthony Towns in the second quarter. Jones had a noticeable bruise on his forehead and was sent back to the locker room to check for a concussion. He never returned to the floor. KAT suffered a bloody gash over his right eye but he was able to get patched up and returned a short time later.
Then, in the fourth quarter, Peyton Watson left the game immediately after he grabbed his hamstring, noticeably limping. He went straight to the locker room. P-wat, who has become a star this season for the Nuggets, is awaiting the results of an MRI per ESPN's Tim Bontemps. Coach Adelman said about the injuries, "Just seeing so much of [it] this year. I just feel bad for the guys in the locker room." So do we, coach.
There's still more to unpack
Those injuries aren't even the whole story. Because of them, the Nuggets were playing shorthanded again. On a back-to-back after going through the gauntlet on the schedule. Nikola Jokic, in just his fourth game back from his own knee injury and trying to ramp up, saw 44 minutes of game action. Jamal Murray saw close to 48, and Christian Braun played 43 in his second game back from injury, too.
David Adelman finds himself in quite a predicament moving forward. You have to play your stars to win, obviously, but you don't want to risk burning them all out in the middle of the season when the long-term goal is a title in June. Against the Knicks, the Nuggets were on a nine-man rotation, and two of them got injured!
The number of injuries the Nuggets have sustained this season is incredible. They have not had more than three starters healthy on the roster in what seems like an eternity. They were already looking tired and sluggish from being so banged up. And they didn't need a game in which they had to run the stars into the ground, especially one in which they lost.
Now the attention shifts to the rapidly approaching trade deadline. The Nuggets are one of the few teams that have not made a move yet. That may change thanks to these latest injuries.