Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets tame the depleted Wolves
It’s clear that we’re never bored on dates in between Wolves etc Nuggetsand this year it is Denver who imposes his law by signing the second victory in a row on the floor of Minnesota!
Faced with 26 points from Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle, the Nuggets could rely on Jamal Murray (23 points, 11 assists), Tim Hardaway Jr (23 points) et Aaron Gordon (23 points, 10 rebounds) for the relay a Nikola Jokic who once again turned the heads of the opposing interior with a new triple-double: 27 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists.
Denver quickly showed its ambitions by being up to 12 lengths ahead in the first quarter (5-17), which the locals absorbed especially thanks to the aggressiveness and skill of the interior duo Reid-Randle, Naz Reid even gave Minnesota the lead at the end of the first quarter (29-31). The Wolves then briefly took the lead, especially with an 8-0 run marked by three-pointers by Rob Dillingham, Naz Reed and a dunk by Anthony Edwards (52-45).
The Murray-Gordon-Jokic trio held the house until the break (60-55), and the debates were again undecided after returning from the locker room, this time with an impeccable Tim Hardaway Jr. who supported Nikola Jokic on one side, and the enthusiasm of the Edwards-Randle tandem on the other. Anthony Edwards made it close twice before allowing Julius Randle to make the final dunk to end the third act with two points for the Nuggets (86-88).
The mano a mano ended early in the fourth quarter, when David Adelman’s men went on an 11-2 run with Aaron Gordon and Bruce Brown to settle downtown with 3-pointers and the Murray-Valanciunas pair made it 92-101. This time, despite Anthony Edwards’ last-ditch offensives, the Nuggets were able to stay in control until the end, thanks to Jamal Murray’s mastery of scoring or passing and two final baskets by Joker to close out the affair 123-112.
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– Power of 7. There are no secrets, stability at the highest level pays off, so it is no coincidence that after almost a month of competition we find Oklahoma City and Denver at the top of the Western Conference. Denver once again demonstrated the solidity of its composition on the floor of one of the big teams in the conference, despite the absences of Cam Johnson and Christian Brown, to seek the seventh consecutive victory, the best current series in the West.
– Strength…171. The Randle-Gobert pairing has enough to impress many rackets around the league. But the tandem does not really affect “The Joker”, who already offered himself a triple-double during the previous meeting, which beat Denver in Minnesota. What about his 171st career triple-double in the regular season? The Serbian was once again dominant, contrasting his technique and basketball IQ with the Wolves’ aggressiveness to often make the best decisions. So much so that sometimes the contrasting interiors had to feel helpless in front of such a machine.
– Power… Zero. This may be due to his hamstring injury sustained in late October. However, Anthony Edwards has already been in a tough outside shooting range for two games. After his 1/7 against Sacramento, the guard returned 0/8 from behind the arc this time around. In the end, he corrected the situation with aggression along the circle. But without an outside shot, his game becomes much easier to predict.
2025-11-16 05:35:00
