Wind Chimes: Was it the right call to bench Nikola Jokic vs. Boston?

Welcome to Wind Chimes, a notebook of reporting, observations and analysis from me about what I’ve seen, heard and talked to people around the team about over the last week.

Nikola Jokic and the starters got benched; the right or wrong move?

It didn’t matter if the Nuggets’ starting five or second unit took the floor to open the second half Sunday vs. Boston, Denver wasn’t winning that game either way. The Celtics punked the Nuggets last night. Straight up. It was a dominant display. Boston held Nikola Jokic to one of the worst shooting nights of his career and hopefully gave Denver the wake-up call that it needed.

Michael Malone also tried to deliver a wake-up call of his own when he trotted out Bones Hyland, Austin Rivers, Davon Reed, JaMychal Green and DeMarcus Cousins to start the third quarter. Malone had seen enough after Jokic and his starters allowed a 24-6 run to close the first half.

“For me, it appeared that we just kind of gave in and quit,” Malone said. “That’s why I didn’t want to reward that behavior by starting that group in that third quarter. I thought that the bench unit was at least going out there and competing and playing hard and fighting. That’s just me man, that’s like my DNA. If somebody is kicking our ass and we’re fighting and competing and they’re just better than us, so be it.”

“They’re a very good team, but if we’re getting our butts kicked and we’re just taking it, possession after possession, heads are dropped, body language giving in, I’m not going to reward that behavior. There are principles in life, and they go against every principle in my body.”

I couldn’t believe the blowback Malone got for this move on Twitter last night. Do we really coddle NBA stars to such an extent that they can’t handle a benching after a half like that? Is Jokic really not professional enough to realize that he was awful Sunday, which he did postgame — he shot 8-23 from the floor and 2-6 from 3-point range and didn’t help himself defensively — and accept a coach’s decision? We’re seriously worried about him revolting against his coach of seven years for getting benched down 25 points at the half? Because that was the sentiment from many Sunday night. That’s what I heard from voices I trust in the Nuggets community after I said I didn’t have a problem with Malone’s move to bench his starters.

The Nuggets have 10 regular-season games left before the playoffs. Denver has lost four of its last six and as of Monday morning finds itself in seven spot in the West. If the season ended today, the Nuggets would be in the play-in. Michael Malone knows when and how to push his team’s buttons, and this team desperately needed a wakeup call.

Of course, Jokic shouldered the blame after the loss.

“Today’s game, we lost because of me. It’s very simple,” he said. “Maybe I forced it, maybe I just thought I was going to have easy scoring, but I didn’t. They guarded me really well. Defensively, I was not where I was supposed to be. That’s why we lost the game. It’s very simple.”

Words were exchanged between players in the Nuggets’ locker room postgame. It sounds like DeMarcus Cousins was the most vocal. Jokic said he didn’t speak up because he had nothing to say. Translation: he thought it was pretty obvious why Denver lost, and it was because he had an awful night as he explained publicly. He still should have joined the chorus of players that spoke up.

But this comment from Jokic was interesting when he was asked if the nightly double and triple-teams are wearing him down.

“Probably I just need to let the ball go and just trust my teammates. That’s going to help us a lot. Probably it’s going to take the pressure off of me.”

There might be some trust issues within the Nuggets. Based on how this season has gone it wouldn’t be surprising if that was the case. Aaron Gordon’s efficiency has taken a nosedive since the All-Star break. Once again, the minutes Will Barton shouldered at the beginning of the year seem like they’ve taken a toll on him. Right now, he’s not close to the player he was over the first few months of the season. Monte Morris has had his fair share of really good nights as of late, but even he’s hit a two-game slump and scored a combined nine points in his last two games. Jeff Green has three total rebounds in his last 57 minutes played.

Desperate times call for desperate measures. The Nuggets are in danger of sticking in the play-in based on how the rest of this week goes. Denver hosts the Clippers, Suns and Thunder on Tuesday, Thursday and then Sunday.

Malone needs this message to hit home.

Serbian NT coach in town?

Here’s something that could raise Jokic’s spirits (or not?). I got tipped off that Serbian National Team head coach Svetislav Pesic could be in town this week. He’s apparently making his rounds within the league and visiting Serbian players all over the country. I’m sure he’s also doing some recruitment for EuroBasket 2022 this summer which tips off Sep. 1.

Cousins asked for rest Sunday

I’m not sure if this was picked up on the broadcast last night, but DeMarcus Cousins asked out of the game with around eight minutes left in the second quarter. He was gassed and was struggling to get up and down the floor after playing seven consecutive minutes spanning the end of the first and the beginning of the second quarter. Cousins has been great since arriving in Denver and is giving the Nuggets more than they could have hoped for at backup center. But that sequence was just a reminder that there’s a limit to just how much he can spell Jokic.

My read on Jamal Murray and MPJ’s progress

Murray was in Grand Rapids for two practices last week and continues to progress, although according to Malone is “not close” to playing in a game right now. I think Porter’s much closer to rejoining the lineup. At the beginning of the month, I had heard that March 20 vs. Boston was the target date for Porter’s return. That date has obviously passed, but I think he still could be back soon. My sense is that he’s been close for a while.

I asked Malone on Sunday if there’s a cut-off date for either player to return. He said as of now that there isn’t, but I’d bet that there’s eventually one established as the clock ticks towards the postseason. I can’t imagine Denver would allow either player to log their first minutes of the season in the playoffs. Just ten regular-season games remain.

DNVR Member Question of the Week

DNVR Members — what’s the most memorable, arena, stadium, ballpark, etc. where you’ve seen a game? I’ll talk about mine, which came in February, in next week’s Wind Chimes.

Leave your answer below in the comments!