The Denver Nuggets came back from a 22-point deficit to beat the Toronto Raptors 125-119 on Monday night. The Nuggets were down 22 late in the second quarter and trailed by 17 at halftime. Nikola Jokic’s 35 points helped propel them to a win. Despite having a worse 3-point percentage (34.5%) and free-throw percentage (61.1%), the Denver Nuggets pulled out the win. The Nuggets are 9-1 since the All-Star break, the best record in the NBA in that timeframe.
Solid 1st Quarter Leads To Terrible 2nd Quarter
After scoring 32 points in the first quarter and only trailing by 2, the Nuggets had a brutal second quarter as they were outscored 34-19. They went 1 for 8 on three-pointers (12.5%) and shot only 33.3 percent from the field. Nikola Jokic led the second quarter in scoring with just six points. The Raptors shot 56.5 percent from the field with a three-point percentage of over 44.0. A huge upset looked to be in the works.
The Denver Nuggets Roar Back In the 2nd Half
After an underwhelming first half, Denver had a terrific third and fourth quarter. The Nuggets outscored the Raptors 42-30 in the third quarter. The Nuggets shot 66.7 percent from the field and made over half their threes (57.1%). At the end of the third quarter, the Nuggets had cut a 17-point lead at halftime to just 5.
Fourth Quarter
The Denver Nuggets continued their success in the fourth quarter. With 10:22 to go, Peyton Watson knocked down a three to make it a one-point lead at 101-100. With just under seven minutes to go, Jamal Murray hit a floater to take the lead for the Nuggets 108-107. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Michael Porter Jr. drained threes with 2:55 and 1:02 left to seal the win for the Denver Nuggets. The team had a field goal percentage of 63.6 and made half their threes, a crucial time to do so. The Nuggets had pulled off an incredible comeback. They scored 32 points in the final quarter and outscored the Raptors 74-51 in the second half.
Head coach Michael Malone said about the team’s drastic improvement in play,
“You can’t trade baskets when you’re down 20, so something’s got to improve. We finally got defense back into the game.”
A Lot Of Points For The Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets’ 42 points in the third quarter is the second most points in a quarter they’ve scored this season. The most was 43 which was scored against the Detroit Pistons on January 7th, also in the third quarter.
It was a bit concerning that the Nuggets went down by 22 points in the third quarter given that the Raptors had Scottie Barnes , Immanuel Quickley, Gary Trent Jr., Jakob Poeltl, and Chris Boucher all out with injury.
Although they made a comeback against the lousy Raptors, pulling off a 20-point comeback is still very impressive no matter what team it’s against. That takes a lot of mental toughness, determination, and talent to do.
Nikola Jokic Makes History
Watching the game live at Ball Arena, Nikola Jokic always looks nonchalant on the court. I haven’t seen a player play at such a high level while making it seem so effortless. Jokic posts up several times per game and makes it work so often. Defenders are unable to stop him as he made over half his shots (53.8%). This game was Jokic’s 125th career triple-double and 21st triple-double of the season. He recorded 35 points, 17 rebounds, and 12 assists. The former 2x MVP also had a season-high six steals, including four in the third quarter. This stat line has never been done before in an NBA game, making Nikola Jokic part of NBA history again.
Could The Denver Nuggets Make Another NBA Finals Run?
The team has won nine of their last 14 games, including a 115-109 win against the top team in the NBA: the Boston Celtics. The Nuggets are 2-0 against Boston this season. This is a good sign that the Nuggets will be a top contender to win it all again this season. The Denver Nuggets are getting good production from their starters. They’re all averaging double digits with Jokic and Murray both averaging more than 20 points per game. Additionally, they’re a healthy team for the most part. Four out of the five starters have played more than 55 games. Jamal Murray is the only outlier here, playing 49 games this season because he has dealt with ankle issues.
Player | Points per game | Rebounds per game | Assists per game |
Nikola Jokic | 26.2 | 12.3 | 9.2 |
Jamal Murray | 21.2 | 4.0 | 6.6 |
Michael Porter Jr. | 16.6 | 7.0 | 1.5 |
Aaron Gordon | 13.9 | 6.4 | 3.2 |
Kentavious Caldwell Pope | 10.1 | 2.4 | 2.4 |
The Nuggets starters have an average field goal percentage of 51.8 so everyone’s shooting good shots. With Nikola Jokic continuing to produce at an elite level and Jamal Murray averaging the 10th most points per game among point guards, the Denver Nuggets are positioned well to make another NBA Finals run.
Will Oklahoma City Steal the Nuggets’ Thunder?
The Oklahoma City Thunder will be the Nuggets’ main obstacle in the West. The Thunder are ranked in the top 10 in nine of the 11 stats listed on Statmuse and in the top five in eight of these stats. That’s an insane number of top rankings for a team. They are best in 3-point percentage, second in field goal percentage (49.9), first in free-throw percentage (83.2), first in blocks per game (6.7), and fourth in points per game (120.8). Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is playing at an MVP level, averaging 31.1 points per game, 6.4 assists, and 5.6 rebounds. SGA’s points per game this season is ranked second in the NBA, only behind Luka Doncic who is averaging 34.6 points per game. Second-year player and former second-overall pick Chet Holmgren is also having a great season, averaging 16.9 points per game, 2.5 blocks, and 7.8 rebounds.
If the Denver Nuggets want to repeat, they are going to have to play up to their level. Denver is 1-3 against the 1st place Thunder this season. Being 25th in free throw percentage doesn’t bode well for important, close games down the stretch and in the playoffs.
Denver Nuggets Record Against Top Teams This Season
Western Conference
- 2-1 against the 4th-place Clippers
- 0-1 against the 3rd-place Timberwolves
- 2-1 record against the 5th-place Pelicans.
- 2-0 record against the 8th-place Mavericks
- 1-1 record against the 6th-place Suns
Eastern Conference
- 2-0 against the 6th-place Pacers
- 0-1 against the 3rd-place Cavaliers
- 1-1 against the 2nd-place Bucks
- 0-2 against the 5th-place Magic
- 1-1 against the 7th-place 76ers
The Nuggets are doing well against the league’s top teams, holding a winning record against four top 10 teams. This strength of schedule is huge. Nine of their opponent stat ranks are in the top 10 so they’ve been playing strong competition this seasonIt doesn’t matter if you beat up on below .500 teams when you end up getting trounced in the early rounds of the playoffs. The Nuggets don’t seem to have this problem.
Nikola Jokic and company need to bump up their scoring a bit because they score the 15th most points per game in the league at 115.0. The top team in the East Celtics and main competition rank fourth in the NBA with 120.8, tied with the Thunder. Three-point and free-throw percentage needs to be improved too. Denver is 25th in free-throw percentage at 76.1 and 13th in three-point percentage at 36.9. Where they’re at right now, ranking 25th in the league in free-throw percentage isn’t going to get them very far in close games.
What’s At Stake For The Nuggets in 2024
If the Nuggets win the NBA Finals this season, they would be the first team to win back-to-back championships since the Warriors in 2017 and 2018. Both teams have generational talents in Nikola Jokic and Stephen Curry. Both are two-time MVPs. The 2017-18 Warriors and Nuggets each had a top 2 record in their conference. The Nuggets are currently second in the west With a record of 45-20, a half-game back from the Thunder. If the Nuggets can improve in three-point and free-throw percentage, they will be a sure-fire NBA Finals favorite.