Rodney Hood's resurrection, Denver's soft pick-and-roll defense and bench struggles: Where the Nuggets lost Game 6

Michael Malone called him the “MVP of the game.” Watching it unfold Thursday, it was hard to believe that as recently as four months ago, Rodney Hood was a middling player on one of the NBA’s worst teams. In February, Cleveland traded him to Portland for Nik Stauskas, a fringe rotation player, Wade Baldwin IV, currently teamless, and a pair of second-round picks. Smart move, it turned out to be.

The southpaw small forward scored 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting Thursday as the Trail Blazers beat the Nuggets 119-108 to force a winner-take-all Game 7 Sunday in Denver. He was a marksman from 3-point land, connecting on 3 of 4 deep balls, and exploited mismatches when he put the ball on the floor.

The Nuggets can live with contested jumpers. If Hood can make fadeaway bombs like this again in Game 7, so be it.

But forcing Hood to rely more on his right hand when he drives should be a point of emphasis. Hood scored three times in the first half (if you factor in free throws) on right-to-left spin moves. He fooled Jamal Murray with this one late in the first quarter.

Murray is in a tough spot guarding a player 4 inches taller than him. The Nuggets have hid him on forwards throughout this series because they’re worried about asking him to check Damian Lillard or CJ McCollum. If Murray is matched up on Hood again in Game 7, he should force Hood right. Make him prove he can hit that baby hook shot with his weak hand.

Later in the first half, Hood used that same right-to-left spin on Will Barton. Barton did a solid job of contesting, but Hood got it to down anyway.

Barton was ready for the spin when Hood tried it again midway through the second quarter. He forced Hood to go up with the shot well outside the paint but was whistled for a foul call that…let’s just say Barton didn’t agree with.

Hood scored six of his 14 first-half points off this move alone. Denver has to know it’s one of his crutches going into Game 7.

“You can’t speak enough about Rodney Hood,” Malone said. “Not just the impact he had tonight but the impact he’s had the whole series. You know, he averaged three points a game in the first round. Talk about a young man stepping up and taking advantage of the situation in an elimination game. So you know great performance by Rodney Hood. We have to be much better guarding him.”

Hood is averaging 16.2 points on 60.2% shooting in the series. He has connected on 11 of 19 3-pointers and scored in double digits in five of six games against Denver. He has feasted with the Nuggets focusing so much on Lillard and McCollum.

What happened to the blitzing defense?

Going into Game 6, the Nuggets had held Damian Lillard relatively in check. Yes, Lillard averaged 26.2 points through the first five games of the series, but the efficiency wasn’t there. Lillard shot 42.9% from the field and 25.0% from 3 in Games 1-5 — down significantly from the 46.1% he shot from the field and 48.1% he shot from 3 in the first round against the Thunder.

The Nuggets made life difficult for Lillard with their blitzing pick-and-roll defense. Nikola Jokic did an excellent job of double-teaming Lillard far away from the basket, forcing him to give the ball up and make someone else beat them. On Thursday, Lillard had more room to roam.

Maybe it was fatigue. Jokic has shouldered a Sisyphean load for Denver in the postseason. He was brilliant offensively again in Game 6, but on the other end, he often hung back and let Lillard be the aggressor. Jokic is rarely going to win a footrace against Lillard when he’s already got a head start going downhill, which is why it’s vital for Jokic to cut him off before it ever gets to that point.

Another reason why suffocating Lillard with double teams is important: He can launch from anywhere inside half court.

Logo Lillard scored 17 of his 32 points in the third quarter. He connected on two 30-footers in that quarter alone. He is 8 for 13 from 30 feet and beyond in the playoffs.

“I think when you combine the fact that Damian knows this is win or go home…coupled with us maybe not being as physical and into him, our bigs maybe not being up at the level as often,” Malone said. “So he’s able to come off and make six 3s. We’ve done a really good job of taking away the 3-point shot from him for most of the series, and tonight he got off.”

Allowing Lillard to get off uncontested long-range bombs or giving him a runway to work with is not a winning strategy. The Nuggets need to do a better job of forcing him to give the ball up in Game 7.

Non-Jokic minutes continue to be a disaster

The Nuggets got off to a great start thanks to Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Both had 10 points in the first quarter, which they played the entirety of along with Gary Harris. Denver led by eight when Jokic got his first breather. Two minutes and 29 seconds later, its lead was down to one.

Holding serve while Jokic rests has been a significant issue in the playoffs, especially in this series. Denver has outscored Portland by 61 points with Jokic on the floor. But in the 55 minutes with Jokic on the bench? Portland has won those stretches by an eye-popping 41 points.

Monte Morris and Mason Plumlee, rock solid in the regular season, have struggled in the playoffs. Morris’ 3-point shot has deserted him, and things got so bleak in Game 6 that Malone benched him for the entire second half.

Portland’s reserves outscored Denver’s 42-13. Morris, Plumlee and Malik Beasley (0 for 8 FG) gave the Nuggets next to nothing. Those three formed the backbone of one of the leagues’ best reserve units during the regular season. Can they regain that form?