Way to beat the “hangover”
Nuggets prevail after clinching playoff berth in previous game
WASHINGTON» The Nuggets didn’t let a beleaguered opponent stop their momentum.
Denver survived a late run from the Washington Wizards to hang on for a 113-108 victory Thursday night, running its winning streak to five. The win improved the Nuggets’ record to 48-22 and kept the pressure on the first-place Golden State Warriors, who entered Thursday up a half game in the standings in the race for the No. 1 seed.
“I was really worried about this game just because of the hangover effect of clinching in Boston (on Monday),” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “To pull this out, even though it wasn’t pretty, speaks to our team and not being satisfied.”
Rather than the Nuggets relying on any one singular star, Thursday’s win was a democratic effort with eight of their nine rotation players logging double-digit scoring nights. In addition, five guys — Nikola Jokic, Paul Millsap, Gary Harris, Jamal Murray and Torrey Craig — all finished with exactly 15 points.
Will Barton, who had 13 points, drained a clutch 3pointer with just over a minute left to create some distance. The Wizards were led by 25 points from all-star Bradley Beal but were undone by the Nuggets’ 3-point shooting. Denver finished 14-of-30 from long range.
After two days off following the Nuggets’ emotional, playoff-clinching win in Boston, Malone was curious how his team would respond, especially since the Wizards were coming off an overtime loss against the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.
“It’s about us,” Malone said, getting to the heart of his team’s motivation with 12 games remaining. “Who do we want to be? Do we want to be a young, immature team that doesn’t know how to handle success? Or do we want to be a team that’s yes, young, but understands the importance of handling that success but finding ways to strive to be better.”
Malone seemed to test his young team midway through the third quarter. The Wizards ran off a 26-5 run to build a 10-point lead, and Malone opted to let his team play through it, unwilling to give them a lifeline. The Wizards, ironically, called a timeout, and the Nuggets closed the quarter on a 10-0 run to tie it at 85.
“It’s tough to coach effort sometimes and urgency,” Ma-
lone said. “I wanted to see how we were going to respond. Our guys have to understand, especially the players that have zero playoff experience, in the playoffs, every possession matters. You can’t take possessions off.”
Jokic had two big baskets and a couple helpers to help stamp out Washington’s momentum.
Denver’s all-star center, who entered Thursday’s game with 39 double-doubles, hasn’t garnered the same MVP chatter as Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo or Houston’s James Harden, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be part of the conversation.
Malone said people who fail to consider his candidacy may be skewed by the highlight-reel plays of more athletic stars.
“For us to be in the position we’re in is largely because of Nikola Jokic,” Malone said. “He may not be on Sportscenter’s top 10 with alley-oop dunks, blocking shots, all that kind of stuff, but his passing, his playmaking, his scoring, his rebounding, his IQ , his vision are all off the charts.”
Wizards coach Scotty Brooks wasn’t lacking in any praise.
“He makes passes that guards and Magic (Johnson) didn’t even make,” Brooks said. “He reads the play way before the play is even halfway into the play. He throws the ball, and the guy all the sudden has a layup. I’ve seen it time and time and time again. I rewind it all the time.”