Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic remain in sync

1. If there is one reason to have faith in the Denver Nuggets championship aspirations this season it is the perfect synergy of the Nikola Jokic – Jamal Murray two man game. The duo took a 500 day hiatus yet picked up immediately where they left off as if they never stopped playing. The two of them are so perfectly in sync at all times, especially at the close of each half when the other three players seem content to get out of the way and watch as the two dance back and forth en route to the exact outcome that they seem fit. The term pick your poison seems to undersell the conundrum presented by those. Often times, the duo will gladly make that choice for you.

2. One of my favorite things about Jokic is that he has a counter for every read the defense makes. Here, rookie Walker Kessler clearly studied his scouting report to note that these rub screens send Jokic to one of his favorite spots on the left block. But Jokic sees him jump the action and decides to pop out to the three point line, taking advantage of Kessler’s early work.

After the game, Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy said of Kessler, “Walker came to the bench at one point and said like ‘I’m trying really hard.’ I said, ‘Dude, I get it. You are trying really hard. And keep trying hard. This is part of your growth.”

3. The Nuggets appear to have found a new way to get a backdoor lob for Aaron Gordon. I don’t recall seeing this one in Denver’s playbook but it’s simple enough that I imagine the Nuggets will return to it again in the near future. Watch for Jamal Murray running into a handoff if the lob isn’t there next time.

4. I am growing more and more skeptical of Bruce Brown’s fit defensively with Jokic and the Nuggets. He brings a lot of value to the table as a reserve but I just don’t see him being the defensive stopper that the team needs alongside Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Aaron Gordon, all of whom are locks to be part of Denver’s best lineups this season and beyond.

5. I remain a fan of Jokic using the kick (or attempted kick) as a weapon in PnR defense.

6. Every team has bad defensive sequences but the Nuggets seem to lead the league in plays like the one below. Probably not a coincidence that it happened right as the Nuggets opened up an 8-point lead.

7. Christian Braun is the best Nuggets player of the Jokic era at chasing down loose balls and long rebounds.

8. Vlatko Cancar made his way into the rotation by being a low-mistake player with a great feel for the game. He has found his way out of the rotation after two consecutive games with uncharacteristic mistakes like the one below.

9. My leading theory is that the Nuggets are not in good enough shape to consistently push the ball up the court. But if they were…