MILWAUKEE – The Nuggets believe they’re close.
Even though they’ve lost six of seven and largely relinquished the Western Conference buffer they created with their hot start, the Nuggets swear a breakthrough is coming.
“We can all see it, we can all feel it,” said guard Jamal Murray. “I really think we lost one game this season, all the other games we dropped ourselves in terms of being disciplined, in terms of effort. We were right there. Itap been close games until the end.”
It may take that level of confidence to snap their late-game lapses.
Once up by as much as 17 late in the first half here Monday night, the Nuggets surrendered that lead to Milwaukee via punishing dunks from Giannis Antetokounmpo and multiple devastating 3-pointers. Over the final six-plus minutes the Nuggets allowed four 3-pointers and an Antetokounmpo alley-oop while turning the ball over twice. The Nuggets’ and hit back-to-back 3-pointers to make it a 100-98, but Khris Middleton buried one more 3-pointer for good measure.
The Nuggets, perhaps buoyed by the confidence of holding the NBA’s best offense to 104 points or reflecting the positive messages from head coach Mike Malone, conveyed a sense of confidence after the loss.
“We’re there,” said. “We’re right there. We played really hard tonight, they made some shots at home. A few mistakes here and there on defense, but I think we’re gonna be good. We’re right there. We just gotta stay with each other.”
Malone cited little lapses – going under a screen on an Eric Bledsoe 3-pointer, gambling for a steal only to allow an easy look – as areas to clean up, but he was pleased with how his team fought. The most concerning stat, in his eyes, were the turnovers which led to 31 points. Thatap nearly impossible to overcome on the road against a good defensive team.
“When you turn the ball over and they get going in the open court and they get the highlight plays, the crowd gets into it, you’re just beating yourself,” Malone said. “You’re putting yourself in position to win every night, thatap a positive, thatap a silver lining. But at the same time, you gotta be able to close these games out.”
The inability to win tight games has been a consistent theme of the Nuggets’ slump. They either had the lead late or were within fourth-quarter striking distance in recent losses to Memphis, Brooklyn, Milwaukee (now twice) and Houston. Even with the dispiriting stretch, veteran believes the team is still confident.
“When I say it was a good performance tonight, I think mentally we’re there, we competed,” Plumlee said. “Like I said we were flying around on defense. We’ll break through and we’ll get back to winning. We just got to stay with it.”
Murray’s rebound. The Nuggets’ drought has coincided with a difficult stretch for Murray, but there were signs Monday his confidence was growing. After a chat with Malone following practice, Murray was noticeably more aggressive and flirted with his first career triple-double. He had 17 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, setting his teammates up for numerous easy buckets.
Upset with the loss, Murray couldn’t have cared less with his individual performance. But Malone was pleased, albeit with a caveat.
“I think for him the challenge is going to be valuing the basketball,” Malone said. “As a starting point guard, you can’t have five turnovers. But it was overall, forget numbers, it was good to see him be aggressive, have an effective game. He looked more aggressive to me than he has lately, per our conversation yesterday.”
