Five takeaways from a wild Double OT win for the Nuggets versus Utah

• Jamal Murray is back and extremely clutch

• Nikola Jokic was inconsistent, but brought it up when it mattered
• Defensive execution and clock management for late game work should have work

• Jerami Grant finishes with 46 minutes compared to 22 for Paul Millsap

• Three-pointers remain a concern at both ends of the floor

That was one of the most back-and-forth games in the whole bubble so far. After wrestling the Utah Jazz’s lead in the fourth quarter, the Denver Nuggets attempted to give the game away several times. They ended up in a thin win 134-132 in double overtime, but the process by which they came to that victory was flawed. Another win is a win, and there were several positive moments, including the return of the Blue Arrow.

Here are my five takeaways from today:

Jamal Murray is back, and he’s still clutch

There were ups and downs of the Blue Arrow in his return. His efficiency was not great, and he still looked a little hampered by the hamstring injury he suffered before this game.

Still, how can you not love playing and pairing shoes in the strip of this one?

Murray played the day with 39 minutes, 23 points on 10/25 from the field, 12 handballs (!!!), and eight assists compared to just two innings. He was on the floor today, working hard defensively against all three of Mike Conley, Joe Ingles, and Donovan Mitchell in crunch time. At the other end, Jokic and Murray rounded out their game of two months to get quality shots after quality shots in the fourth quarter and two periods for overtime. The Nuggets scored again and again, and no matter how many crazy shots the Jazz made, they finally couldn’t keep up.

The high shot that is displayed late in the game is the dimension the Nuggets miss from Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. tandem. Those two are wonderful, but being able to make the dribble and shoot efficiently in pressure situations will always be a valuable skill. Murray has not always been efficient on that appearance, but he is improving rapidly.

Photo by Garrett Ellwood / NBAE via Getty Images

Nikola Jokic started slowly, but showed why he is the best center in the league

At the break, Nikola Jokic had two points and four assists. The jokes started rolling on both the TNT half-show and on Twitter about why Jokic started slowly. Was it weight loss? Was it because he was actually not good? Why did Jokic start so slowly during a game that the Nuggets were 14?

Well, as it turns out, Jokic knew exactly when the switch needed to be turned, and the switch he made did. The big man finished with 30 points on 11/21 from the field to go with 11 handballs, seven assists, and three steals. His performance in the second half and overtime brought the Nuggets back into the game and helped push them over the top, and his basketball in the first overtime (although made confusing by the malfunction of the game clock) was as coupling as can be against a mismatch.

He also hit another Sombor Shuffle in OT which is an automatic recording in this article.

Defensive execution and late game clock management need work

There were several moments I could refer to. I could just handle the whole game honestly. The Nuggets are a young team, and it does not help that they got unhappy at various conversations. A phantom loose ball feeling invoked Murray late in the fourth quarter let the Jazz stay in the game. At an entrance to Porter, Ingles hit the back of his hand to force the ball out of bounds, but because Ingles never touched the ball – only Porter’s hand – the Jazz got possession. A terrible, not a good, very bad rule.

Yet the Nuggets hurt themselves just as much as the refs hurt them. Utah hit 22 three-pointers today, some of them absurdly difficult shots, some the result of poor defensive performance. Porter defensively had some tough moments, and although the experiences will help him develop faster, there were certainly painkillers that will be quite extensive in this playoff run.

The Nuggets without Gary Harris and Will Barton certainly do not help matters on the defensive front, but the best thing Michael Malone can do in the short and long term is play Porter through those mistakes and use the film sessions afterwards to teach him.

Photo by Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images

Jerami Grant doubles Paul Millsap’s minute total

Millsap started today at power forward and played 22 minutes. It was not an incredibly effective stretch with only two points and two handballs to look forward to. The Jazz walked the floor really well and played at a fast pace, centered around threes and shots at the rim. In addition, Millsap’s internal presence offensively was not as impactful with Rudy Gobert’s playing center.

Jerami Grant, coming off the bench and playing both periods for overtime, played 47 minutes. He was also productive, scoring 21 points on 7/12 from the field to go with two handballs, two steals and two blocks. The Nuggets have some trouble playing handball today, and Grant will have to take some of that responsibility, but he also spent a lot of his time protecting the perimeter, and even defending Mitchell and Conley for streaks.

This can be anything, and it can be anything. With Porter out as a player who can gobble up rebounds at both ends of the floor, Malone has gone to Grant after the streak of several games in the bubble so far. In the beginning it was because the Nuggets were chimney swept. Well, it feels more like a matchup choice. With Porter and Jokic on the floor, the Nuggets need a player who can defend the perimeter as much as they need interior help. Grant has the versatility to play inside and out, and his minutes reflect Malone’s confidence in him in that role.

Three points shot left at both ends

The figures speak for themselves. Denver almost lost this game because they were outscored by Utah on 39-line. The Denver interior scorers made clear this time around, and their defense fell down in the fourth quarter to get them back in things; however, the Los Angeles Clippers or Houston Rockets will not easily drop Denver.

The Nuggets now hit 32.3% of three-point range in their five games in the bubble. That’s 19th in the NBA and not a whole sign in general. In addition, Denver’s opponents score 44.4% of three, leading the NBA (and not in a good way). It’s a wonder the Nuggets are 3-2 in the bubble and speaks to how coupled Jokic has been in these games.

This trend cannot continue if the Nuggets champions participate. How they improve remains to be seen, but Porter and Craig in particular need to be better. The players who roast the Nuggets alive on the perimeter are consistently wings on outstretched trees (and Damian Lillard). If Denver is unable to figure out their defensive schedule, their dropout from the playoffs will be faster than expected.