3 Things that must happen for Nuggets to repeat as NBA champions
By Will Eudy
2. Continue excellent clutch performance
The Nuggets had their ups and downs over the course of the regular season, with thankfully far more ups. But one area where they consistently excelled was performing down the stretch of close games. It seemed like all year long, when the stakes were highest, Denver turned up the tenacity and found a way to make plays at both ends of the floor.
The numbers support the eye test on their clutch factor as well. For the entire 82-game regular season, the Nuggets ranked third in clutch time offensive rating and second for clutch time defensive rating. For overall net rating in the clutch, they led the league.
Out of all 30 teams in the association, Denver had the second-most wins in clutch situations, trailing only the Chicago Bulls. The stats consistently point to the Nuggets being a high-level performer, and that bodes very well for their chances of going back-to-back.
Denver built these good habits that led to their efficient performance in clutch scenarios by creating good chemistry between Jokic and the rest of his supporting cast. The collective basketball IQ of the Nuggets is extremely high, and that will ideally lead to their clutch play down the stretch not missing a beat once the playoffs begin.
