Morris, a “throwback,” keeps adding to his game

In Michael Malone’s eyes, Monte Morris is still a rookie.

Morris, who played just 26 minutes a season ago, has blossomed into one of the most reliable and effective players on the Nuggets (18-9), regardless of experience. Teammates have heralded his professionalism and coaches have praised his poise as his role, lately as a closer, has evolved.

On Monday night, the Nuggets’ coach called him the MVP of the team’s 105-99 win over the Grizzlies even though their franchise centerpiece, Nikola Jokic, had 27 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.

Jokic was absolutely critical to the victory, but given how commonplace his production has become, it’s perhaps easier to take his absurd stat lines for granted. Both players were irreplaceable against the Grizzlies, but Morris’ second-half charge was more out of character. He tied career-highs with 20 points and six rebounds while also dishing five assists. With the Nuggets trailing in the third quarter and the Grizzlies threatening to impose their plodding imprint on the game, Morris took over.

“Obviously Jamal (Murray) is a scorer,” Malone said. “He’s more of your modern NBA point guard, whereas Monte is more of a throwback. Obviously tonight he was not that.”

Morris, who leads the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio among regular players at 5.68, flipped a switch in the third quarter and asserted himself as an offensive force. He scored 15 points in the second half on an array of transition layups, floaters, turnaround jumpers and 3-pointers. His four no-hesitation 3-pointers, in particular, revealed his burgeoning confidence.

“I just didn’t want to lose,” Morris said. “We let one get away in Charlotte and Atlanta, and I knew tonight, if we didn’t make a run soon enough, it was going to be the same outcome. I wanted to be aggressive, especially with guys out (with injuries). I’ve got to change my mind-set from being that facilitator, scoring here and there, to being more in attack mode.”

Morris tweaked his shot this past summer to focus more on his follow-through in order to get his left hand out of the way. He said that change, coupled with his time spent last season carving up the G League, gave him confidence to impose his will on an NBA game.