Grades: Suns run Nuggets off floor in Game 2

“I felt we quit tonight.”

-Michael Malone

Nikola Jokić – A-

The Nuggets are standing and watching Jokić. The movement dried up, and the opposition is keying in on the only player concerning them. Yes, we can identify several possessions in which Jokić might have looked to pass instead of score. And he failed to take advantage of Deandre Ayton’s two early fouls. But let’s be realistic about the expectations. No one is cutting, no one is hitting their jumpers, and this is the result:

With Jokic in the post the Nuggets got to get some movement from somewhere, anywhere. It is just too easy for the Suns to collapse on him. You can see almost all five defenders are in the paint with him when he goes up to shoot. pic.twitter.com/d3CrQEnSMy

— Mo Dakhil (@MoDakhil_NBA) June 10, 2021

That’s four Suns defenders with a foot in the paint and an eye on the big guy. Then there’s Chris Paul camping in the passing lanes. Stopping Jokić is priority 1, 2, and 3 for Phoenix. Somehow, someway, Jokić finished with 24 points on 53% shooting, 13 rebounds, and 6 assists in less than 30 minutes of playing time.

Michael Porter Jr. – F

Porter denied that back pain played into his performance, but he had a thick wrap around his midsection throughout his entire warmup, and he looked stiff on the floor. Porter shot 3 of 13 from the field and 2 of 9 from deep. The Suns roasted him on the other end too. There was almost no context in which he was good defensively, and it got downright ugly when Chris Paul summoned him to center stage in the second half. The Suns would have played him off the floor if Michael Malone had other options.

Aaron Gordon – C+

Gordon only spent about 20 minutes on the court, and he failed to fill the box score. He was, however, flying around defensively in the first half. Gordon looks like he cares right now. Like the slow start in Phoenix is eating at him. That clears a low bar at the moment.

Austin Rivers – C-

Rivers is struggling to identify mismatches and feed Jokić entry passes. He’s also struggling to stay on his feet right now. Rivers is falling over once every three drives, per DNVR Stats and Info.*

*This is not a real thing.

Facundo Campazzo – C+

Campazzo struggled to score like most of his teammates. Beyond that, he couldn’t put any pressure on Phoenix’s defense. Perhaps if Monte Morris were playing at a higher level, there’d be a discussion about changing up the starting lineup. In the meantime, Campazzo at least played some defense in the first half. The limitation is rearing its ugly head. He can’t do some things at the NBA level, but he’s one of the few playing to win right now. He was a menace in the first two quarters.

Will Barton – A-

Barton returned in Game 2, coming off the bench with a minute restriction. He made an immediate impact.

Welcome back Willy B pic.twitter.com/OnmekO9KXu

— RG 📷 (@RyanGreeneDNVR) June 10, 2021

First of all, we must acknowledge the pass: goodness gracious, Jok. From there, it’s the chemistry that pops. Barton hasn’t played since Hector was a pup. He’d just checked into the game when this happened. He and Jokić didn’t skip a beat. Barton blocked a shot (got away with goaltending) shortly after and then drained an open 3. He finished with 10 points and 3 assists on 50% from the field and 40% from deep in just under 16 minutes.

Monte Morris – D+

Morris shot 1/7 from the field in a follow-up to his abysmal shooting performance in Game 1. He did grab 5 rebounds and dish out 3 assists, but his defense was porous, and the missed shots were killers. Morris was one of Denver’s best and most important players in the opening round. The Nuggets are still waiting for him to show up in this series.

JaMychal Green – C+

Green is low on the list of folk to blame, but he took a step back Wednesday night. The Nuggets need some rebounds, and his five in nearly 24 minutes off the bench were not enough.

Paul Millsap – C

Millsap’s box score looks decent, and if you missed the game this grade might confuse you, but he knocked down some shots long after the game was lost. Millsap turned it over three times in under 12 minutes off the bench. He’s got to stop taking the ball up the floor. It’s literally never ended well.

Markus Howard – C-

Howard knocked down a couple of shots. But that’s the only thing he does at an NBA level yet.

Game Notes:

After the game, Malone went back to the tough love. He hammered his team and included himself for essentially quitting in Game 2. Nikola Jokić again disagreed with his head coach’s assessment.

Malone has a better sense of how to keep or lose that locker room than anyone on the planet, but it’s a white-knuckle ride for him at the moment, and the Nuggets look more deflated than galvanized thus far.