It took only three Summer League games for Bones Hyland to deliver his first signature moment in a Nuggets uniform.

With the Nuggets and Mavs tied at 79 with 15 seconds left in the fourth, Hyland drove by his defender and finished at the rim to give the Nuggets the lead, a rarity for Denver Saturday afternoon. It looked like it could be Hyland’s first game-winner as a Nugget, but Mavs guard Carlick Jones was fouled on Dallas’ next possession and hit two free-throws to send the game into overtime.

Bones Hyland gives the @nuggets the lead with 15 seconds to go on NBA TV! #NBASummer pic.twitter.com/psGbV8QNrM

— NBA (@NBA) August 14, 2021

Hyland found himself with the ball in his hands and the game on the line again in OT. After he missed two-straight free-throws with eight seconds on the clock and the Nuggets leading 87-85, Hyland corralled the offensive rebound from his second missed free-throw, got fouled again, and this time made both attempts from the charity stripe to give the Nuggets their first Summer League win.

Hyland finished with 28 points (9-17 FG’s, 5-8 3 FG’s), 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Nuggets Summer League head coach Charles Klask put the ball in his rookie guard’s throughout the second half and let him cook.

“When them bright lights come on, I never shy away from them,” Hyland said. “That’s been me my whole life. I make things happen when them lights are on. The bigger the stage, the bigger I play.”

Hyland’s breakout performance in Las Vegas certainly felt like a moment. It felt like a game you’ll be able to look back on a couple years as the start of something. Hyland was locked in from beyond the arc. He got by his man and into the paint with ease for a few creative finishes. When the onus was on him to make plays in the fourth and OT and bring Denver back from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit, he welcomed the responsibility and pressure as rows of family members and supporters in “Let’s Get Bizzy” shirts cheered him on from the stands.

“He was very calm,” Klask said. “He was very poised. He was not afraid of the moment.”

“You don’t want to say he was necessarily clutch, because I think he can do that all the time. This is not just a one-time occurrence.”

The Nuggets also got a big-time contribution from Zylan Cheatham, who finished with 15 points and 18 rebounds. Zeke Nnaji has struggled with his offense throughout Summer League but played well defensively and hit a clutch triple to give the Nuggets a 77-75 lead with 1:51 left in the fourth.

But this win was all about Bones.

Hyland admitted postgame that he didn’t lead the Nuggets like he wanted to during his first two Summer League games. He thought he was too laid back and not assertive enough with his teammates in huddles and on the floor.

Saturday afternoon, his smile and spirit was contagious. Hyland said he didn’t sleep Thursday night after the Nuggets dropped to 0-3 in Las Vegas, but he came to the arena with a different state of mind. His teammates fed off his vibes all game.

“Once my energy is flowing, once I’m smiling and I’m joyful on the floor,” shhhh, it’s just priceless out there,” Hyland said.

The Nuggets have been very impressed with how Hyland processes each possession throughout the course of a game. Klask remarked Saturday that Hyland told him at one point during the second half that he didn’t want to work off a ball screen and just wanted to take his defender 1-on-1 after Dallas trapped him near half-court when the Nuggets set a screen for him on a previous possession.

“That type of stuff from a 20-year-old kid is very advanced,” Klask said. “It’s very rare. You don’t see that very often.”

It’s instances like that, along with the reports that filter out of Nuggets practices about how behind closed doors Hyland makes a point to never go through empty or mindless practice reps, that get you really excited about his future. Hyland puts meaning and purpose behind every drill he does, per Klask.

That work ethic combined with Hyland’s skill, competitiveness and his desire to win should set him up for a bright future. VCU Coach Mike Rhoades told DNVR earlier this month that in his 25 years of coaching, he’s never been around someone who loves to be in the gym as much as Bones. Hyland’s dedication to his craft has been apparent since he joined the Nuggets in Vegas earlier this week.

Hyland said following Saturday’s victory that how he’s played so far at Summer League gives him more confidence that he’ll be able to contribute early in his NBA career. Michael Malone will ultimately decide just how much Hyland plays next season, but this rookie’s future looks awfully bright.

“I like to put everything on my back. I’ve got big shoulders,” Hyland said. “So I was just like, ‘We’ve got to get this win.’ I wanted to do everything in my power to get this win.”

“I feel so good. I cant stop smiling!”