It wasn’t pretty but the Denver Nuggets got a much-needed 105-100 win over the Atlanta Hawks. Here’s how each player fared:
Jamal Murray: D+
Murray’s aggressive play against the Charlotte Hornets stuck with him and carried over against the Hawks. Murray still isn’t hitting threes but he is able to get to the rim and was a helpful member of the offensive unit against Atlanta in the first half. His defensive energy remained high, as it has all year, but he still cannot buy himself a three-pointer and his shot stopped falling in the second half. That needs to change quickly as he is now 2-21 from three on the season and is shooting under 30 percent from the field to start the year.
Gary Harris: A
Harris was aggressive from the opening tip and was looking to shoot. He was cutting with a purpose, playing terrific defense on and off the ball, was getting out in transition, and setting up his teammates with good looks. Harris is as consistent as any player in the league and he continues to produce for Denver night in and night out.
Wilson Chandler: C
Chandler has yet to find his groove offensively with the Nuggets but that has done nothing to take away from his defensive ability as he continues to be fantastic on that end of the floor. Getting more offensive production from Chandler would be a welcomed addition but as long as he continues to be a defensive stalwart he will be helping the Nuggets.
Paul Millsap: B+
Millsap got the Nuggets going against his former team and then did a good job of blending as the rest of the team started to heat up. While Millsap didn’t pile up points against his former team he did stuff the stat sheet by being disruptive and grabbing steals, protecting the rim, playmaking for others, and grabbing rebounds. As a cherry on top, Millsap carried the Nuggets down the stretch for the win against his former team. Not bad.
Nikola Jokic: A
Jokic had himself a monster rebounding game to go along with his usual versatile scoring mixed with elite playmaking ability. He was able to secure a double-double in the first half as the Hawks were no match for Jokic’s length and positioning. It was great to see Jokic’s physicality overwhelm the smaller Atlanta team throughout the game.
Emmanuel Mudiay: A
Mudiay had easily his most productive game of the year against the Hawks. He was slicing to the rim at will, keeping the ball moving, hitting his jump shots, and, most importantly, was not turning the ball over. A great bounce-back game from Mudiay, who was not able to score against the Hornets a game prior. He was the best player on the court for stretches against the Hawks.
Will Barton: B+
Barton struggled badly to start the game as he was turning the ball over and missing open shots but he was able to get himself out of his slump and start scoring for the Nuggets bench unit. Barton may not have been his usual explosive self against the Hawks but Denver got the win regardless and he was a big reason why.
Malik Beasley: A
Beasley was one of the most impactful players for the Nuggets in the minutes he was on the floor. His defense was smothering, tenacity was showing on the boards, and he was disruptive in passing lanes. Beasley then backed up a solid first half performance with a great stint in the fourth quarter where he grabbed three big rebounds for Denver. The loss of Juancho Hernangomez to mono has not hurt the Nuggets much mostly thanks to Beasley’s immense effort whenever he is on the court.
Mason Plumlee: A
Plumlee came into the matchup against Atlanta and annihilated the much smaller Hawks team down low. Plumlee was doing all of the dirty work when he was on the court and was a positive offensively. He was blocking shots, distributing, pushing the ball up the court, gobbling up rebounds, and was a force physically. Great game from Plumlee.
Michael Malone: B
Denver is significantly more talented than the Hawks but did not play like it so for that Malone gets docked but an overall solid performance from his roster. They overwhelmed the smaller Hawks team and came away with their first road win of the year.
