One of the storylines of the Nuggets preseason has been how in sync Denver‘s starters have been. That continued tonight against the Chicago Bulls where Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets to a 124-117 preseason victory.

Murray scored 30 points, 21 of which came in the first half. Jokic tallied 18 points, 8 rebounds and 8 assists in only 24 minutes. Aaron Gordon added 17 points.

Peyton Watson led all Nuggets bench scorers with 12 points.

Here’s what else stood out from the game.

Jamal Murray looks ready

Murray was the story of Tuesday’s win — and he’s been the story of the preseason. He looks in shape and primed for a monster season. The talk on press row tonight was that Murray has never better heading into a regular season. He’s playing fast and with a purpose.

One-handed throwdown 🔨 pic.twitter.com/xBha0aL1qt

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 15, 2025

Murray also went 10-10 from the free-throw line tonight. He attempted 10+ free-throws just once last season.

Starters dominate again

The Nuggets‘ starters look absolutely ready for the regular season too. Murray, Jokic, Gordon and Cam Johnson all hit double-figures in scoring. Christian Braun had an all-around game and finished with 6 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists.

The Nuggets starting unit is going to roll teams again, and the Johnson for Michael Porter Jr. swap could make that group even better on both ends of the floor.

AG GOT 🆙 pic.twitter.com/cbsI8Lrig1

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 15, 2025

Denver’s starters have played some exceptional defense this preseason too.

Johnson, who’s the one new member of the Nuggets first five, continues to integrate himself into that lineup. He’s looked hesitant at times, and that was also the case Tuesday. But Johnson had some great moments too and went 2-4 from 3.

David Adelman the mad scientist

Adelman continues to tinker with his rotation as he tries to find the perfect lineups to play. Tonight, he went back to the Jokic-Jonas Valanciunas front court look, which he also played vs. the Clippers. Adelman also debuted a Jokic-Valanciunas-Gordon front court against Chicago.

There’s a way lesser chance that we see that look this season than the Jokic-Valanciunas pairing, which is a combo Adelman will definitely play.

He also staggered Johnson at times as the only starter with the bench. Watson continues to log significant minutes at backup point guard too. Adelman’s definitely not afraid to experiment — but Watson’s role as a lead ball handler with the second unit looks like something that’s going to stick.