DENVER — The Denver Nuggets edged the Toronto Raptors 121-115 on Friday night, showcasing their championship experience in a tightly contested matchup.
Toronto arrived at Ball Arena fully healthy aside from rookie Collin Murray-Boyles, who has missed the last 10 games with a left thumb injury and riding a three-game winning streak. The Raptors’ momentum, yet, faced a stiff test against a Denver team led by three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.
“There’s so much opportunity out there for them. I suppose they see that,” said Nuggets head coach David Adelman. “You don’t know what’s gonna happen … I think they’ve been playing on a high all year because they’ve been in the mix all year … they’re a legit team in the conference. When you feel like that late in the season, it’s kind of a new feeling. They’re taking advantage of that. The momentum is high right now.”
Denver, missing only Peyton Watson from a lineup that defeated Toronto on New Year’s Eve, countered with a strong performance from Jamal Murray, who came off the bench to deliver a game-high 31 points. The Raptors’ early surge and impressive third quarter weren’t enough to overcome the Nuggets’ veteran poise.
Despite the loss, the Raptors (39-30) remain fifth in the Eastern Conference and continue to build confidence as they head to Phoenix for Sunday’s game, the third contest of a five-game road trip.
Jakob Poeltl led Toronto with a strong performance, finishing with 23 points, 11 rebounds, and two steals, even as likewise limiting Jokic to 22 points, eight rebounds, and nine assists – all below his season averages. The Raptors’ starters were a collective plus-17 in 17 minutes against one of the NBA’s top starting lineups.
Rookie Ja’Kobe Walter provided a spark off the bench, scoring 11 of his 14 points in the first half and shooting 4-of-5 from three-point range.
“The more we get healthy, the more we play together, the better it’s going to be for us,” said RJ Barrett (18 points on 6-of-14 shooting, four turnovers), who frequently matched up with Canadian Olympic teammate Jamal Murray. “I think we’re showing that on a nightly basis. But there are times and moments that we can play better as a team.”
Toronto started strong, jumping out to an 11-2 lead and finishing the first quarter in front. After Denver responded to take a four-point lead at halftime, the Raptors came out firing in the third, hitting nine consecutive shots and converting 17 of 22 field-goal attempts, fueled by five Nuggets turnovers. They opened up a nine-point lead heading into the final frame.
However, the Nuggets, playing in front of their home crowd and motivated after a disappointing loss to Memphis on Wednesday, rallied behind Murray. He scored 12 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter, assisting on a three-pointer by Bruce Brown and hitting a pair of tough jumpers to cut the Raptors’ lead to one.
“You know, even when they made shots, guys were still in the ball,” said Murray. “Guys were still playing hard and calling out coverage and stuff. But I mean, they’re still a good team, so they’re up on us, and we just made a good push, like we normally do.”
The Raptors responded with Brandon Ingram scoring 19 points and Scottie Barnes contributing 15 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, two steals, and two blocks, even blocking Jokic on a post-up. The game remained close, tied with 59 seconds left, before the Nuggets closed it out.
In the final four minutes, Jokic and Murray combined to score or assist on every Nuggets basket, utilizing their well-established two-man game. Tim Hardaway Jr. Added a crucial boost with a pair of three-pointers off offensive rebounds, finishing with 23 points on 7-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc.
“When we have a third quarter like that, we have to try and keep the momentum rolling into the fourth,” said Barrett. “They play very physical, one of the most physical teams, so all these games coming up now against these good teams, everyone is trying to fight for seeding everything. It’s playoff intensity.”
The Nuggets are also focused on building momentum as they push for a strong finish to the season.
“It’s not going to happen overnight,” said Murray. “But we just gotta go at our own pace and then focus on each game. And I thought tonight was like a great bounce-back energy game in front of our home fans. That’s just the energy we need to play with. Those were, those are the games where, if we had lost that game, our effort would have been something that I could have slept well with, you know. So it’s just good to come up with a win and start building some great.”
Chemistry on display: Murray spoke about his connection with Jokic, whom he’s played with throughout his nine-year career: “There’s a lot of communication with no words, just with the basketball and with our eyes,” he said. “And we’ve created a really good chemistry and also feel for each other. You know, he also reads me, and I read him and like, him as a being, he reads me and my emotion and stuff like that. So, yeah, we’ve seen a lot of coverages. We’ve seen teams being in a drop, teams being up with me. Teams try to switch it. They try to weaken it. Sometimes there’s teams that bring three defenders over. Teams that front him. So we just figure it out.”
Challenges of success: Adelman highlighted a unique challenge for Denver as a top team in the league: “With the streaming stations, obviously there are more national games,” said Adelman. “The league, they’re partners with these people. It’s cool to be critical and that they want to see us play on national TV (but) going into back-to-backs is tough when you play a late game and lose an hour. We’ve done that three straight weeks, and we’re gonna do it again next week … I know (Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr) has talked about a (lower) number of games to craft sure the basketball is quality … I agree with that. Or if you want a traditional 82, for the history of the game, statistically is important, I think they have to discover a way to expand the calendar a little bit, in my opinion.”
A familiar face: Jonas Valanciunas, the beloved former Raptor, caught up with familiar faces before the game. In his 14th season, he’s averaging 8.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in a career-low 13 minutes per game, but still brings a sense of humor: “What are you doing here so early?” (The Nuggets didn’t have a shootaround.) Without missing a beat: “I’m still a young guy. Here early to get my shots up to impress the coaches.” He praised Denver’s quiet atmosphere and good restaurants, but noted the dry air: “I never had to use body lotion until I came here,” he said.
