There were some who had thought the Nuggets were better off losing the last games of the season, so they would secure the fourth seed in the Western Conference and a matchup against the Houston Rockets. They were resting everyone anyway.
But head coach David Adelman said that the Nuggets were "not ducking anybody." Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves showed why the Nuggets weren't scared of a matchup that had bitten them in the past.
The Nuggets came out sleepwalking, as they often do in a lot of the matinees they've played, but seasoned Nuggets fans knew to give them a chance to wake up for the early-afternoon start. And once they did, late in the first quarter, into the second, you could slowly see why Adelman was right. The Nuggets pulled away for a 116-105 victory to take a 1-0 series lead.
The Nuggets were 3-1 against both the Rockets and the Timberwolves this season. Sure, the Nuggets were knocked out by the Wolves two years ago, and they were 0-4 against them last year.
But the Nuggets have Nikola Jokic, the best basketball player in the world. And his basketball I.Q. is off the charts. He had time to figure out the Timberwolves.
The Nuggets shot poorly and still found a way to win
One of the hallmarks of the now 13-game winning streak was all the different ways the Nuggets found to win. And it was no exception against the Wolves. The Nuggets, the best three-point shooting team in the NBA by percentage in the regular season at 39.6%, shot just a paltry 27.8% from downtown.
The Timberwolves were actually more efficient shooters in the same number of attempts, outshooting the Nuggets 46.0% to 43.7%. And the Wolves shot better from deep at 32.4%. Jamal Murray, the Nuggets franchise leader in threes made, a record set this season, was 0-8 from deep. And the Nuggets still won.
But the Nuggets were much more aggressive, getting to the free-throw line 33 times to the Wolves' 19. And that was the difference. The aggressive attacks on the hoop by Jamal Murray spurred a 16-16 line from the free-throw line. By contrast, Jokic had one free throw attempt. But he kept the Timberwolves off their game plan for him.
Jokic played very well against Minnesota this year
It must be that basketball I.Q. thing. Jokic had another triple-double in the Game 1 win against the Timberwolves. He avoided the physical play that was in the cards for him via the Wolves, and he was able to put a typical 25-point, 13-rebound, and 11-assist line together.
Minnesota had held Jokic to just 2 and 7 assists in their wins in games six and seven against the Nuggets two years ago. They wanted to take the pass away from him again and force him to score.
And obliged them with 19 second-half points to help the Nuggets pull away. Jokic averaged 38.3 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 11.3 assists against the Timberwolves in four regular-season games this year.
It's early, but it's clear to see why the Nuggets weren't "ducking anybody" coming into the playoffs.
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