Grades: Denver Nuggets Break Rims and Winning Streak in Ball Arena

Nikola Jokić – C-

Let’s address what was out of Jokić’s control first. His fellow starters literally could not knock down a three. The lone three from any starter came when AG connected on a Hall Of Fame Bad Beat at the end of the game, which we’ll address later. But the gang shot 0-24 prior, which helps explain Jokić’s woeful 4:6 AST/TOV ratio.

The turnovers were within Jokić’s control, however. As were his own missed 3s, as was his porous defense. The Thunder built a wall in the paint, daring other starters to hurt them, and while Jokić occasionally rampaged through—he did score 22 points on 17 shots—he ultimately didn’t do enough. The reality is we’ve seen this before. We’ve seen it for much of the season. Sometimes he has to impose his will. But he conceded and floated back out the perimeter to alter the floor spacing in the fourth quarter. A reasonable thought, except that Jokić was way off from distance, and Malone had surrounded him with capable shooters off the bench. The bench had played them right back into the game, and Malone turned to Jokić to capitalize on the momentum. Jokić did not rise to the occasion. That feels weird to write.

Aaron Gordon – F

Gordon took seven threes, and most were wide-open, but it’s still too high a number when he couldn’t connect. If anyone was capable of turning those open threes into vicious drives, it’s him, but he trusted his shot. In the end, he shot zero free throws, choosing not to test OKC’s wall. That, too, was the wrong approach. By the way, for the gamblers out there, Gordon’s pointless three in the final seconds of the game pushed the total points over the line. A brutal beat for the under bettors. The starters finished 1-25 from deep.

Will Barton – F

The three-point record is no longer looking like a feel-good moment. Not after Barton shot 0 of 9 from deep, extending his streak to 0 of 15 since approaching the record. That’s his longest streak of misses in a Nuggets uniform. Go figure. As for what else he could have done, the supremely messed up part of his putrid performance is that he led the Nuggets with five assists and did not turn the ball over. He actually did switch gears but quickly dropped the approach and went back out searching for his three. The sour cherry on top of his melted sundae was the defense, or lack thereof. The Thunder took it right at him in the clutch to secure the win, and Barton offered no resistance.

Monte Morris – D+

The Mayor couldn’t figure it out either, shooting just 2 of 9 from the floor and scoring four points in 26 minutes. He did get back on the right track with four assists to one turnover and stole the ball three times.

Jeff Green – D

Jeff recorded two fun monster dunks, but he ultimately didn’t dent the result. The starters got shellacked.

JaMychal Green – B-

Green didn’t shoot well, but he rebounded like a maniac, which was vital to the bench playing so well.

Bryn Forbes – B+

Forbes picked up some of the slack for the starters, burying 5 of 11 from distance. He felt it and led all bench players with nearly 27 minutes. Forbes had a chance to swing the result alongside the starters in the fourth—he closed over Jeff Green—but Denver struggled to manufacture healthy half-court possession. Forbes ended up chucking a few out of desperation. He also recorded four turnovers, the second-highest mark on the team.

 Austin Rivers – B-

Rivers should have closed this game over Barton. Denver could have used his defense, which was painfully apparent as OKC sought Thrill out. Forbes was out there for the shooting, which makes sense, but there was still room for Rivers as well. Alas.

Bones Hyland – A-

Bones wreaked havoc from deep and led some electric minutes from the bench. He played a fantastic game and got the crowd on their feet. Malone conceded that he should have let the bench finish the job in the fourth, but we might also bemoan that decision should they have run out of gas. Given Morris ‘ play of late, Morris over Hyland in the clutch is a fair call. Still, it’s hard not to wonder if the rookie could have saved the day. Hyland was on fire. He led all bench players with 19 points.

DeMarcus Cousins – B

Cousins played his tail off, sensing the urgency of the bench minutes on a night when the starters didn’t have the juice. He didn’t score well, but he rebounded well, defended pretty well, and recorded four assists. He and the bench were inspiring. After checking in for Cousins in the fourth, Jokić sprinted back to the bench to dap him up for the effort.