Nikola and the Nuggets struggle in New York, now on worst skid of season

Michael Malone reinserted Aaron Gordon into the starting lineup but shook things up by making Christian Braun a reserve—no matter things were out of whack for the Denver Nuggets all night in New York on Wednesday.

We never truly saw the Nuggets‘ new-look starting five, as three-time MVP Nikola Jokić picked up two fouls within the first two minutes and was sent to the bench early. He didn’t check back in for quite a while but Denver hung around thanks to Jamal Murray, who got the Nuggets back to within a handful and kept it that way for most of the second quarter when Jokic rejoined the game.

But Jokic, who played the fewest first-quarter minutes of his career and the fewest first-half minutes of his season, never really got into rhythm. Despite Karl-Anthony Towns also getting into foul issues, Denver was unable to use size as an advantage with both Jokic and then Michael Porter Jr. in foul trouble.

Jokic had just four points, four rebounds, and four assists late in the third quarter—typically when the Nuggets make their run. That push never came, as the Nuggets dropped 122-112. It was Denver’s third straight loss, the team’s worst losing streak of the season. And maybe the worst game of the season for both Jokic and Malone.

“Better fight, better effort, just got to be a little bit cleaner,” Malone said postgame. “I do believe in it’s how you win and how you lose, and I did not like the loss in Chicago at all. Did not like how we played. I thought we messed with the game. I didn’t think we played nearly hard enough. Tonight I thought guys’ effort was there. And to your point, it looked like he was going to get away from us. We kept on clawing back… disappointed in the outcome, but a lot more pleased with how we played and the effort that was put forth.”

Jokic finished with 17 points, six rebounds and six assists. While he struggled, Murray stepped up for 33 points, five rebounds and six assists. While Aaron Gordon was decent in the contest, the Blue Arrow was the lone Nugget on target. The team had 14 turnovers that led to 23 points to just five turnovers for the Knicks. Despite outrebounding the Knicks by 12, Denver struggled with perimeter defense, allowing New York to hit four more threes at a higher percentage. The Nuggets’ inability to contain opposing guards was once again a problem. This time it was All-Star starter Jalen Brunson cooking for 30 points and 15 assists with just two turnovers and six missed shots

“Stop beating ourselves. I mean, that’s priority number one,” Malone said. “Good teams don’t beat themselves, especially on the road, and I think lately, we’ve been beating ourselves too often, and we have to nip that in the bud, because we’re such an efficient offense, and when we don’t turn it over you look at our field goal percentage, three-point percentage, our free throw attempts, our paint points, our assists, our fast break points, but when you turn the ball over, you negate all that. So I think as we head to Philly, we have to find a way to value the ball at a much higher level.”

The familiar theme of the season seems to be really highlighted by the top teams, which New York is—climbing to the NBA’s fifth-best record at 31-16. While the Nuggets follow up their best 15-game stretch of the season at 12-3 with the season’s worst skid.

The Nuggets continue their road trip with matchups against the 76ers on Friday and the Hornets on Saturday. The starting five might stay despite the result as Malone noted Gordon is the team’s starting forward and he’s now cleared for a fuller role coming back from his calf injury. At the same time the coach can’t resist playing Jokic with Russell Westbrook, who have developed a strong connection.