Remember when that Western Conference No. 2 seed seemed like all but a sure thing?
The Nuggets had just beaten their next closest challenger (OKC) in staking themselves to a four-game lead with 23 to go — a lead that was actually five games, since Denver clinched the season series against OKC. And they had just won five in a row with a weekend set of home games against Utah and New Orleans on the horizon.
Fast forward a week later, and all the sudden things look a little less rosy.
After three straight losses, including an unforgivable home loss to the Pelicans on Sunday, the Nuggets are staring down the league’s .
Not only does that include two games at Golden State, but also a string of six road games in 11 days between March 18-29 that features just one tanking team (New York) and dates at Boston, Indiana, Houston and Oklahoma City.
Brutal.
A few other tidbits:
- 12 of the Nuggets’ remaining 19 games are against teams with .500 or better records and 11 of 19 against teams with winning records. (Denver plays the 31-31 Detroit Pistons once)
- 6 games are against the four other teams in the Western Conference’s top five: Golden State (2), Portland (2), Houston (1) and Oklahoma City (1)
- Of those four other teams in the top five, only the Thunder have a more difficult schedule than the Nuggets. In fact, Golden State (18), Portland (20) and Houston (21) all have schedules that rank in the bottom half of the league in terms of schedule strength.
- 11 of 19 are on the road, with the Nuggets playing just five home games the rest of March.
- 5 of the team’s final 6 are against teams with winning records: at Golden State, vs. San Antonio, vs. Portland, at Portland, at Utah and vs. Minnesota, which has a losing record.
What does that mean?
Games like Wednesday night’s against the reeling Los Angeles Lakers are absolute must-wins if the Nuggets want to maintain their grip on one of the conference’s top two seeds.
Denver is running out of gimmes, and the margin of error is starting to narrow.
Updated March 6, 2019 at 9:22 p.m.: Corrected to reflect that the Nuggets play the Pistons one more time, not twice.
— , The Denver Post
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Whatap on tap?
Wednesday: At Los Angeles Lakers, 8:30 p.m., ALT, ESPN
Friday: At Golden State Warriors, 8:30 p.m., ALT, ESPN
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Quick Hits
+ Nuggets Mailbag: Have Malik Beasley and Monte Morris earned crunch-time roles for Denver?
+ 🔊 Nuggets Ink podcast: An appreciation of Paul Millsap, handicapping first-round matchups, end-of-regular-season goals and more.
+ Has the Isaiah Thomas “honeymoon phase” worn off for Nuggets fans already?
+ Nuggets’ Isaiah Thomas: “Why not try to get the No. 1 seed?”
+ “He’s our best defender, up and down”: Gary Harris giving Nuggets a gridiron jolt
+ Isaiah Thomas, Gary Harris and Monte Morris in the same lineup? Nuggets are trying to make it work, Mike Singers writes.
+ Will Barton showed some flashes of brilliance in the Nuggets’ dramatic home win over OKC last week.
+ If you happened to miss Monday night’s heartbreaking loss to San Antonio, you can get a taste of all the pain here.
+ Nuggets Mailbag: Have a question about the team? .
By The Numbers
3.5
The Nuggets sit in the No. 2 spot in the Western Conference standings, 3.5 games ahead of a group of three teams vying for the three seed. The question: Are the Nuggets a legitimate threat as a No. 2 seed? Mike Singer and Mark Kiszla debate.
Parting Shot
“You can’t allow that”: Russell Westbrook says fans have too much leeway after kid hits him during Nuggets game
After a boy sitting at courtside hit Russell Westbrook during the Nuggets-Thunder game at the Pepsi Center last week, Oklahoma City’s star guard said fans have too much leeway to touch players. Read more…
Get in Touch
If you see something thatap cause for question or have a comment, thought or suggestion, email me at mschubert@denverpost.com or tweet me .
