Grades: Denver Nuggets Forget to Show Up With Sixers in Town

Nikola Jokić – A-

Nikola Jokić went full world-destroyer in the first half. He dropped 27 points on just 12 shots, grabbed six rebounds, and recorded six assists in his first 19:25 of playing time. He was virtually unstoppable. And yet, the Nuggets trailed by six at the half. The Nuggets barely resembled the team that ripped off five straight wins despite similar injury trouble. Every player posted a negative +/- save for the garbage time crew. The bench stunk again, but the starters never earned a big lead for them to lose. Even Jokić lost steam. After a near-perfect first half of basketball, he failed to make a field goal in the second.

After the game, we learned Jokić banged his right wrist midway through the contest. Our Harrison Wind reported that it’s nothing serious, but Jokić is now listed as questionable for Friday night’s game with the Chicago Bulls.

Will Barton – A-

Barton was Jokić’s only running mate in the first half. Of the 52 first-half points scored by Denver, 42 came from those two. Barton scored his 15 first-half points on only eight shots. He also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out five assists. You can do the math. Most of these assists were to each other. It was a two-man show that only lasted one half, and it wasn’t nearly enough to take down the shorthanded Sixers. Barton fizzled out too. After a superb start, he shot just 1 of 6 from the floor in the second half.

Barton’s defense wasn’t impressive either. He’s played well on that end for much of the year, but like most of his teammates, he didn’t bring the energy required Thursday night. He jogged out lazily to contest shooters, only for them to blow by him with ease. And no one in a Nuggets uniform could contain Tyrese Maxey or Seth Curry.

Aaron Gordon – D+

Gordon’s offense was putrid, and he never made up for it with his much-praised defense. He took Tyrese Maxey from the opening tip — not Tobias Harris as I expected — but he never contained him. Maxey found and took open lanes to the rim all night long. Gordon didn’t fare much better in the cross matchups, either. He never looked comfortable on either end, and the result is arguably his worst game of the season.

Monte Morris – C-

Morris played much better in the second half, but he played poorly to start the game, and he gave the Nuggets almost nothing on defense.

Jeff Green – F

I rarely hand out this grade. In 23-plus minutes as a starter, Green recorded only one rebound. As in, that’s literally the only stat he recorded. We’re all sharing the same observation at this point, but Uncle Jeff is prone to checking out. On Thursday night, it was for most of the game.

PJ Dozier – D

Dozier is still a victim of poor roster construction, and with both Nnaji and Porter out, he’s a guard who was initially asked to play the three and is now occasionally playing the four. It’s suboptimal, but Dozier isn’t immune to criticism either. The bench is weighing him down too, but he was supposed to be one of the players who buoyed that unit. We’ve seen no indication that a break-out season is coming so far.

Bones Hyland – D

Bones scored his only two points from the charity stripe and could not get the ball through the hoop. He shot 0 of 7 from the floor and 0 of 5 from deep. Defensively, he looked young, small, and far too easy to move. Bones is a rookie. We should expect some struggles, especially when that rookie is a unit’s best hope.

JaMychal Green – C

Green only logged 8:47 on the court, and he scored six points in that span. Green didn’t exactly play well, but the bar is low for him right now. He took a baby step in the right direction.

Austin Rivers – D+

A clip is worth a thousand words.

One of the best passes and worst layups I've ever seen. pic.twitter.com/IPwOlX53Eq

— Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) November 19, 2021