After an offseason defined by change, the Denver Nuggets began their new campaign in San Francisco against the highly touted Golden State Warriors. 

The Nuggets roared to a big lead in the first half, and the second unit did their jobs in both stints. But Nikola Jokić and the starters dropped the ball down the stretch.

The Nuggets lost the opener in overtime and wasted the best performance of Aaron Gordon’s career.

Nikola Jokić looks out of shape

Despite recording a triple-double, Jokić did not play well. He launched 3 after 3 in an inefficient performance, and missed a shot that would have won the game as regulation expired. He couldn’t get it done in overtime either. To be frank, he looked out of shape and thoroughly exhausted by night’s end. Despite the statistical production, it was a shockingly poor performance in the opener. It cost the Nuggets the game.

One-sided effort

The Nuggets scored at will, but the Warriors outscored them with 137 points. It was a rough start for David Adleman’s and Jared Dudley’s new defense. The Warriors feasted at the line and enjoyed success on the offensive glass — the Nuggets looked small in the frontcourt without Gordon on the floor. Denver looked flummoxed and scrambled for much of the night. Notably, Christian Braun struggled mightily with staying attached to Curry.

Aaron Gordon is healthy and still a sharpshooter

Before the last campaign, Gordon had yet to shoot above 35% from 3 at any point in his then 10-year career. Remarkably, that number jumped up to 43.6% as he reinvented himself around a lingering calf injury. Gordon picked up where he left off in the first half of the opener, posting 25 points on 7/7 shooting from deep. That ties the most 3’s made without a miss in one half during the play-by-play era.

Gordon didn’t stop there. He knocked down his first 3 of the second half, opening the game 8/8 from downtown. He finished 10/11 from deep and set a career-high with 50 points. His final 3 broke a late tie before Steph Curry responded with an unbelievable shot to pull even again.

It was a ridiculous display of shotmaking from Gordon, and this time it didn’t feel like a silver lining to his compromised athleticism. Gordon is healthy now, and the early returns suggest he’s still a sharpshooter. Unfortunately, it was all for naught this time around.