If Friday nightap preseason finale against the was any indication, the should have absolutely no trouble on the offensive end of the floor this season.
Their starters built a double-digit lead before resting the entire fourth quarter, and coach Mike Malone rode his reserves to a 98-93 win to finish the preseason 4-1
At its best, the Nuggets’ offense was a dizzying array of passes and cuts, swirling around the Bulls’ young defense. Were it not for a cold fourth quarter from the reserves, their shooting percentages (42 percent from the field; 30 percent from three) would’ve been much higher. But the game also included several dry spells, including one that saw a 17-point lead midway through the third quarter disappear into a seven-point margin in just minutes.
“Weird game,” Malone said. “We had great stretches. We had some stretches where we were pretty bad. A lot of peaks and valleys tonight.”
paced the Nuggets with 18 points, followed closely by (17) and (15). But the offense, with Jokic as its fulcrum, was never going to be the problem this year. The Nuggets finished with the sixth-best offensive rating in the NBA last season and the best overall offense from the All-Star break until the end of the season.
Despite how promising the offense looked, Friday nightap dress rehearsal for the regular season was most encouraging for what it revealed on the defensive side of the floor.
Filling up the lanes
Playing an aggressive brand of defense, guards Harris and Murray kick-started their offense by swarming the Bulls’ guards and suffocating the passing lanes. In total, the Nuggets forced 17 turnovers, including 13 steals. Itap exactly the type of defensive performance Malone had hoped for heading into next week’s season opener against the and their pesky backcourt. Murray finished with five steals while Harris, Barton and Jokic had two apiece. Some of those takeaways could be attributed to poor ball handling by Bulls guard Kris Dunn (six turnovers), but the Nuggets’ guards forced the issue. It led to numerous run-outs and easy transition buckets. The Bulls shot just 42 percent from the field, including 27 percent from three.
Typical Joker
Jokic’s final line – 15 points, seven rebounds and five assists – is an indication of whatap to come this season. Jokic, who finished fourth in the NBA last season with 10 triple-doubles, made it look effortless again Friday night. He rarely hunted for his shot, seemingly content to facilitate for others. The lone blemish was his five turnovers, which have been a problem all preseason. He’s averaged nearly four per game, mostly off clunky high-screen handoffs. He averaged 2.8 turnovers last season.
Rotational answers
The Nuggets’ depth is an indisputable strength, but itap unlikely they want to play 10- or 11-man rotations going into the season. Forward Trey Lyles was the first man off the bench, and he later saw some minutes with starters. After Lyles, it was and , followed by Juan Hernangomez and then as the backup guard. The odd-man out was small forward , who’d hovered around 20 minutes per preseason game but didn’t see any action against the Bulls. The only solace for Craig is that he has had a standout preseason on the defensive end and Malone could easily tab him when the matchup presents itself.
The Nuggets are an elite offensive team that began showing encouraging signs on the defensive end of the floor Friday. We’ll have to wait until Wednesday’s season opener at Los Angeles to see if that translates to games that matter.
Roster set
Following Friday night’s game, the team announced it had waived Xavier Silas and Donald Sloan. That puts the roster at 15, not including their two two-way contracts for DeVaughn Akoon-Purcell and Thomas Welsh.
