Seven nuggets for the last seven All-Star Games, which have taken place without a representative from the Denver Nuggets. That drought should come to an end next month.
1. Nikola Jokic sucks the life out of a defense without ever getting six inches off the floor. Take the two highlight plays he made in the second half of Thursday’s 121-100 demolition of the Los Angeles Clippers.
First, Jokic did his best Patrick Mahomes impression by collecting a rebound, turning and firing a 70-foot bomb downcourt to Jamal Murray for a flush. Jokic did it with one hand in a single motion — an impossibly smooth sequence for a 7-footer.
Later in the fourth, Jokic stepped through two Clippers and boinked a pass off the backboard to the player with the surest hands on the team: himself.
“I told him on the bench that every time I’ve seen someone use that trick, they’ve gone up and dunked it,” Michael Malone said.
Jokic puts his own spin on everything. His unorthodox approach has the Nuggets in first place in the Western Conference as the halfway point approaches — a position nobody predicted.
“He’s an All-Star,” Paul Millsap said. “He’s made us an All-Star group. To pick us up like that and be creative like that.”
Carmelo Anthony was the last Nuggets player to make an All-Star Game. He did it in 2011 and was traded to the New York Knicks one day after the game. Jokic, who recorded his fifth triple-double of the season Thursday, looks like the next Nugget who will break through. Jokic won’t get enough fan votes to earn a starting spot, but coaches, who vote on All-Star reserves, should give the big man his due.
Jokic is averaging 19.2 points, 10.2 rebounds and 7.6 assists. He’s put the Nuggets on his back while they’ve weathered injury after injury. It’s a safe bet to book that flight to Charlotte for the Feb. 17 exhibition game involving the NBA’s biggest stars. Start mentally preparing yourself for some sweet lob passes.
“Another triple-double,” Malone said. “The guy continues to amaze.”
2. Cool moment after the beatdown: Jokic and Von Miller exchanged jerseys on the court. Football is played with your feet where Jokic comes from, but ever since he came to the States, he has paid attention to the American version of the sport.
“It means a lot, to be honest,” Jokic said of his moment with Miller. “I watch him a lot. He had an injury. He was the (Super Bowl) MVP, but he’s a defensive player. I look up to him, the whole team looks up to him. He was an MVP, but he’s playing defense. That’s what we’re trying to do. He’s a beast, animal. He was an MVP and playing the best. That’s what we’re trying to do. He’s a beast. He can’t be stopped. He’s someone I look up to and really admire.”
3. No Gary Harris, no problem. The Nuggets starting shooting guard missed a second consecutive game with a tight hamstring. Malik Beasley stepped into his place and filled in admirably. Beasley hit three 3s in the first quarter. What Malone liked even more than the treys, though, were the passes Beasley made.
“He had five assists tonight,” Malone said. “A lot of guys, you can tell their games are maturing. They’re improving. They’re no longer in there just to guard and make shots. Malik has now added the ability to make plays off the bounce.”
Thursday marked Beasley’s second five-assist game of the season. In his first two years, Beasley never recorded more than three in a game.
4. Mason Abdul-Jabbar? That’s what it looked like when Plumlee rolled to his right and sky hooked one in from 10 feet.
Plumlee was excellent all game. He scored 17 on 7-of-8 shooting, corralled 12 rebounds and doled out five assists. Denver outscored L.A. by 15 points in his 20 minutes on the court.
“Mason was a starter on a playoff team,” Malone said. “I’ve said this many times. It speaks to his selflessness about understanding that I’m not a starter but I’ve got to do everything I can to help this team.”
5. Jokic’s ability to lead the fast break is well documented. Plumlee doesn’t do a bad job either.
Denver has the best playmaking starting center in the game. It might have the best playmaking backup center, too.
6. Juancho Hernangomez has started 25 games for the Nuggets this season, but he came off the bench against Miami and L.A. and has seen his minutes dialed back considerably. Malone hinted before the game that Hernangomez was fighting through an unspecified injury. Afterward, the Spanish forward clarified that it’s a groin injury.
“It’s not just fatigue,” Hernangomez said. “My groin’s been killing me.”
It’s unclear when Hernangomez sustained the injury. He’s struggled since the calendar flipped to 2019. He’s shooting 35.3 percent in six games since Jan. 1.
“If it gets to a point where we have to shut him down for a little bit we’ll do so,” Malone said. “As of right now our training staff thinks it’s something he can play with.”
Fatigue could be contributing to Hernangomez’s struggles too. Last season Hernangomez played just 277 minutes. Through 38 games this year he’s already up over 1,000.
7. Pepsi Center has become one of the NBA’s most difficult places to play once again. The Nuggets are 17-3 at The Can — the second-best home record in basketball.
“A lot of it has to do with fans coming out and making this a really tough place to play and getting behind their team, which is great,” Malone said. “My first year to now, what a world of a difference in terms of sellouts, crowd presence and support. We appreciate that and hope that continues.”
The Nuggets were 30th in home attendance in each of Malone’s first two years. They climbed to 20th last year. Now they’re 15th. Fans are flocking back. The Nuggets should have their first All-Star representative since Melo soon. A playoff appearance — possibly with home-court advantage — will come not long after that.
