The List: A new addition to the Michael Porter playbook

1. One of the most memorable plays of last season was the Nikola Jokic, Mason Plumlee pick and roll (PnR), a rare combination from two centers. Last night, the Denver Nuggets might’ve stumbled upon a new, equally as rare but perhaps even more sustainable action between Jokic and Jerami Grant.

It looked like Jokic was sharing a laugh with Nuggets assistant head coach, David Adelman after the first play. Adelman is the unofficial “offensive coordinator” for the Nuggets so either he devised this action ahead of time and was happy to see it work or the action unfolded naturally and Adelman has a new weapon to add to his playbook.

2. I got a good laugh out of Karl-Anthony Towns drawing a “Jokic foul” on Jokic, running one of the Nuggets’ most common plays to get Jokic the ball in the post. This wedge screen play is basically just a diagonal screen to get the big cutting across the lane to the post. Jokic loves to tangle himself up with his defender before making the cut. In this example, Towns gave Jokic a taste of his own medicine.

3. The Nuggets are slowly adding new plays specifically for Michael Porter Jr. On Tuesday, they dusted off an old Trey Lyles play to get him an open shot at the top of the key.

4. Speaking of old plays, new players, here is a fun back screen play that becomes even more interesting with PJ Dozier swapped in for Jamal Murray.

Here is an example with Murray in that spot. This might be a candidate for a future edition of WHAT MAKES THIS PLAY GREAT since it typically results in one of three great option: a lob, an open three, or a PnR lob.

5. I really love Dozier’s height and length from the point guard position. Helps him throw entry passes over defenders and helps him challenge rim protectors in the PnR.

6. Will Barton might be the team’s best PnR player. He has a really good feel for gaining tiny advantages before attacking. In the clip below, he gets Jokic a wide open free-throw line jumper.

7. Jerami Grant seemed to spend a bit more time in the dunker spot last night than he usually does. Figuring out the perfect balance between hanging out in the dunker spot and stretching out to the corner will be a big part of his success alongside Jokic. Both areas provide different advantages when it comes to spacing. The corner obviously provides the threat of the three-point shot while the dunker provides the threat of an offensive rebound or dropoff.

8. While they may not have technically been game winners, Barton has two daggers over the last 3 games.

The full List