Five Observations: Turnover issues spoil Jamal Murray’s big night

The Denver Nuggets fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves 112-104 on Wednesday. Despite being without two of its top four players (Gary Harris and Paul Millsap), Denver still had a chance to knock off an excellent division opponent. It held a four-point lead going into the fourth quarter but couldn’t hang on. Here are five observations from the game.

1. Turnovers sink Nuggets again

The Nuggets’ night began with Nikola Jokic‘s errant pass out of bounds and ended with Jamal Murraycoughing it up. Between those ugly bookends were 19 other giveaways. The Nuggets finished the night with 21 turnovers in all — the biggest reason why they lost yet another close game.

Jokic was off from the start. By the time the final buzzer sounded, he’d committed 10 turnovers. His previous career high was seven. Unlike most nights, those passes he whips into impossible windows weren’t working.

“Turnovers have been a recurring nightmare for this team,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said.

Denver has turned it over 20 or more times in seven games this season. It is 1-6 in those contests.

2. Nikola Jokic’s weird night

Denver’s Serbian center returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Nov. 30. He got the start alongside Mason Plumlee in the frontcourt. Supersized lineups haven’t worked well for Denver in the past — you remember The Balkan Buddy Ball experiment — but Jokic/Plumlee lineups fared well against the Timberwolves. Denver built big leads in the first and third quarters with both guys in the game.

Jokic scored 22 points and grabbed six rebounds, but his night was marred by turnovers. He hit the double-digit turnover mark for the first time in his career.

“Of course I need to take care of it,” Jokic said. “It was a big number, 10. I was just trying to find guys open.”

Offensively, Jokic vacillated  between passive and aggressive even more than usual. He attempted zero field goals in the first quarter, four in the second, seven in the third and one in the fourth.

He finished as a minus-two in 36 minutes. It’s rare for him to finish in negative territory.

3. Jamal Murray: great on offense; defensively, not so much

You knew Murray was feeling good about himself when he dusted off his bow and arrow celebration early in the fourth quarter. On the play that preceded it, Murray hit a step-back three-pointer with the shot clock winding down.

Murray scored 13 of his game-high 30 points in the final 12 minutes. He was phenomenal — at least on one end of the floor.

“Offensively, he was terrific,” Malone said. “But again, you can’t just be a one-way player. Jamal has to hold himself more accountable on defense as does everybody.”

For much of the game, Murray struggled to contain Jeff Teague. The Timberwolves veteran point guard roasted Murray in the third quarter when he made 4-5 shots and scored 10 of his 16 points.

It was a mixed bag for the 20-year-old, who’s mostly been excellent in December. In 10 games this month, he’s averaging 19.1 points and shooting 53.6 percent from three-point territory.

4. Another rough outing for Will Barton

Will Barton has bailed the Nuggets out on a number of occasions this season. He scored 37 against the Bulls and hit the game-winner. Against the Pelicans last week, he scored 11 points in overtime to help Denver get a win.

When the Thrill Barton biopic comes out in 2037, highlights from those two games might make the cut. What won’t make the movie are snippets from the two games Barton’s played this week.

Barton threw up a clunker against Oklahoma City on Monday, scoring six points on 2-15 shooting. He was bad again vs. the Timberwolves, finishing as a minus-28 in 34 minutes. Barton shot 3-9 from the field and struggled defensively.

5. Mason Plumlee solid again

The Plumdog Millionaire’s strong play continued against Minnesota. He started the game with Jokic, and the pairing worked surprisingly well. Plumlee’s passing ability alleviated some of the spacing issues.

Plumlee also did a nice job of finishing around the rim and hung tough he was asked to guard  Jamal Crawford when Denver switched screen and rolls.

His final line: 13 points (6-10 FG), 10 rebounds, six assists, three steals. He recorded his second double-double of the season. Denver outscored Minnesota by 13 points in his 29 minutes on the floor.