Nuggets-Rockets Grades: Houston, we have a problem

The Denver Nuggets started off hot but eventually were overwhelmed again by the Houston Rockets in an ugly 112-85 loss.

We grade every performance from the Nuggets with our Dynamic Player Rating (DPR), which takes into account 12 different statistical factors.

Note: for DPRs that are lacking context, our beat reporters are offering their scout’s grade.

Nikola Jokic (B-) 65.79 — Offensively, Jokic wasn’t bad, scoring 16 points on a 53 TS%, with eight boards and six assists. His USG% of 30.5 was fairly high and his 108 ORtg was fine in a game where Denver couldn’t muster more than 85 points. While he added two blocks, Jokic struggled on the defensive end where Clint Capela gobbled up 15 rebounds and threw down countless easy dunks hurt, resulting in a 117 DRtg. Jokic was a minus-1 in 25 minutes — good for the best plus-minus among any Nugget.

Jamal Murray (B-) 68.44 — Murray led all Nuggets in scoring with 20 points on 50 eFG%, as he tried to assert himself early. Denver’s lead guard added three assists, two steals, and four boards and was one of the few Nuggets players who’s ORtg (125) was actually better than his DRtg (116). It would’ve taken a truly special performance from Murray to carry the load and keep Denver in the game but his performance certainly warranted a passing grade.

Paul Millsap (D+) 48.39 — As the Rockets outrebounded the Nuggets 46-to-38, their defensive anchor struggled. Millsap only pulled down two boards, but did have two steals and a block. Offensively, Millsap wasn’t much better, scoring eight points on a 57 eFG%. His ORtg (77) and (112) weren’t pretty either.

Will Barton (D-) 35.04 — In 29 minutes, Barton’s production was sorely lacking. He only scored two points in a minus-8 performance where he registered a rough 16 eFG%. Outside of dishing out four assists, Barton had a game to forget with his worst DPR of the year.

Gary Harris (C-) 50.57 — Harris didn’t have a terrible game, scoring 11 points with two boards and three assists and recorded an acceptable 50 eFG%. The problem is that this was exactly the type of game in which Denver needed Harris to step up and play his best, not just be passable. With an 85 ORtg and a 126 DRtg, Harris’ impact just wasn’t enough to stop the bleeding as Houston took the lead and never looked back.

Monte Morris (C+) 62.49 — Morris was Denver’s MVP off the bench despite a minus-23 outing. He scored 16 points and tried his best to carry some of the scoring load in 27 minutes. Morris did record an impressive 71 TS% leading to a 152 ORtg. It didn’t move the needle in the end but Morris at least played his part and didn’t take the loss lying down.

Scout’s Grade (A-) — Morris was one of the few bright spots for the Nuggets in the loss. He was steady at the point as usual but found himself on the floor when the Rockets initially got separation from Denver at the end of the first and beginning of the second quarters. Still, he had a nice night, scoring 16 points on 5-9 shooting.

Mason Plumlee (D+) 47.32 — This just wasn’t a good night for Denver’s bigs, as Plumlee did pull down eight boards but also was a minus-18 on the night. The real issue was Plumlee couldn’t get anything to go down on offense, registering a 25 eFG% and 88 ORtg.

Malik Beasley (F) 32.38 — Beasley’s return to the rotation didn’t go well after a day off against the Detroit Pistons. All he could muster was score four points on a 1-9 shooting from the field and an 0-7 performance from three. He was also a minus-28.

Trey Lyles (D) 41.06 — Lyles didn’t do much in 12 minutes, scoring two points on a 20 eFG% for an ORtg of 24. He added five boards but also ended the night with a minus-5 plus-minus.

Juancho Hernangomez (F) 23.98 — In only 15 minutes, Juancho left his box score empty with zero points, assists, or rebounds, and went a minus-10 on the night. That’s the definition of an F performance, folks.