Bones Hyland latest rookie to sparkle, keeps Nuggets alive

DENVER — Nuggets rookie Bones Hyland pulled up from

near Denver’s midcourt logo and let his shot fly.

The point guard even kept his right arm in the air, too, just to savor a jumper he

knew was going in. He skipped down the court as Golden State called timeout and he held a hand to his ear,

soaking in the arenarattling roar.

From the bench, teammate Nikola Jokic couldn’t help but grin as the reigning MVP took in the second-quarter scene.

Hyland’s the latest young talent to embrace the spotlight during his inaugural postseason. His longrange performance —

an homage to Stephen Curry, the player he grew up watching —

sparked his teammates against the Warriors, helped the Nuggets stave off

elimination and, most importantly, gave Jokic some muchneeded assistance.

“He did what he’s been doing the whole year, ”said Jokic, whose team is headed to San Francisco for Game 5 on Wednesday trailing 3-1 in the

series. “He gave us energy.”

Hyland, the 26th overall pick out of VCU in 2021, has been exhibiting this sort of

swagger all season. He’s turned into instant energy for the Nuggets.

It may be too late in this series — no NBA team has come back to win from a 3-0 deficit — but Hyland could provide valuable

depth down the road when Jamal Murray (ACL) and Michael

Porter Jr. (back) are healthy again.

“Those big shots,” Hyland said, “don’t faze me.”

Hyland hit three straight 3-pointers in a second-quarter

spurt that extended Denver’s lead to 17 points Sunday. These weren’t your ordinary long-range shots, either.

They were Curryesque.

He grew up admiring the way the Warriors standout wasn’t

bashful about launching a shot from any distance.

“He set the foundation for a lot of us

players, changing the game with his shooting abilities,” Hyland

said after a 126-121 win in Game 4. “I’ve

been doing this since I