Nikola Jokic (#15) of the Denver Nuggets holds the ball in the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, October 21, 2022. /CFP
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Golden State Warriors 128-123 at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, on Friday, to secure their first win of the 2022-23 NBA regular season.
Two-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Nikola Jokic scored a triple-double of 26 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists for the Nuggets. It's his 77th triple-double of career, the seventh most in league history. He is only two triple-doubles away from surpassing Wilt Chamberlain.
Jokic didn't have as much rest as most players in the NBA during the offseason because he competed in FIBA EuroBasket 2022 in September on behalf of Serbia. He said he still feels the mental fatigue. Though he often had to face double- and even triple-teaming when he drove into the Warriors paint, Jokic still managed to walk onto the free throw line 11 times while getting as many teammates as possible involved in offense.
Bruce Brown Jr. (C) of the Denver Nuggets shoots in the game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, October 21, 2022. /CFP
The Nuggets' star point guard Jamal Murray missed Friday's game due to load management, but Michael Porter Jr., Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Bruce Brown Jr. filled up Murray's vacancy. The three combined to shoot 11-for-20 from downtown to score 54 points. Brown Jr. only missed two of his 10 field goal (FG) attempts.
The Warriors trailed by as many as 18 points (70-52) after the first half, but put the suspense back in the game in the fourth quarter as Stephen Curry drained three triples. The Nuggets led by five points (124-119) when there were 22 seconds left. Draymond Green drove to the front court quickly but he was immediately fouled by Jokic to force Green, whose career free throw rate is only 71.2 percent, not to mention that he only makes 1.5 free throws per game. Even if Green makes both, it would be better than a 3-pointer by top shooters like Curry, Klay Thompson or Jordan Poole.
Stephen Curry (C) of the Golden State Warriors drives toward the rim in the game against the Denver Nuggets at Chase Center in San Francisco, California, October 21, 2022. /CFP
Green made both free throws, and immediately joined hands with Poole to double-team Bones Hyland next to the baseline. Hyland was caught off guard and lost the ball to Poole, who made a quick layup to cut the Warriors' deficit to only one point (124-123).
Nonetheless, Jokic made his response right way by throwing a cross-court pass to Bruce Jr., who then finished an open dunk to extend the Nuggets' lead to three points (126-123) again. Though it was Thompson's missed 3-pointer and Jokic's two free throws made that ended this game, what happened during the seven seconds between 0:20 and 0:13 showed how fast and dramatically things could change in the game of smart brains like Green and Jokic.
The Warriors carried on their practice of steeling rookies to Friday's game. However, the Nuggets ate nothing like the Los Angeles Lakers and soon made the Warriors pay for giving James Wiseman and Jonathan Kuminga too much time on the court. Though Kuminga sat out the whole second half of the game, the Warriors' bench unit led by Poole was still overwhelmed by their Nuggets counterpart.
Other games on Friday (away teams come first):
Trae Young (#11) and Dejounte Murray of the Atlanta Hawks look on in the game against the Orlando Magic at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia, October 21, 2022. /CFP
Orlando Magic 98-108 Atlanta Hawks
Dejounte Murray continued to prove to the Hawks that they made the right decision of trading heavily for him. By scoring 20 points, nine rebounds, nine assists and four steals, he played well as the team's second offensive engine next to Trae Young. Dejounte Murray's plus/minus of +17 is the second-highest on the Hawks' roster, following only the +26 of John Collins who got a double-double of 23 points and 13 rebounds.
Despite the loss, the Magic's Paolo Banchero, a first-selection rookie of the 2022 NBA Draft class, scored 20 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks in Friday's game. Though he went only 1-for-6 at the 3-point line, Banchero shot 4-for-6 under the rim and earned eight free throws (making seven of them). His still needs work on his jumpers, but the 19-year-old young man already has an idea of how to exploit his size, power and athleticism.
Kyrie Irving (#11) of the Brooklyn Nets shoots in the game against the Toronto Raptors at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, October 21, 2022. /CFP
Toronto Raptors 105-109 Brooklyn Nets
The Nets avoided straight losses thanks to the fierce offensive productions by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving who combined to score 36 points in the second half. The connection between Irving and Nicolas Claxton enabled the team to drive a 22-9 run in the first four minutes of the final quarter, preparing a sloid lead for the Nets' victory.
On the Raptors' side, Pascal Siakam scored a triple-double of 37 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists. In fact, he had 34 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists in the first three quarters. He had to take a breath after that, but during the four minutes when he was on the bench, Irving and Claxton tore the Raptors apart from both ends.
Ja Morant (#12) of the Memphis Grizzlies shoots in the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, October 21, 2022. /CFP
Memphis Grizzlies 129-122 Houston Rockets
Ja Morant of the Grizzlies became the first player of the season to score 40+ points. In fact, he was only one made free throw away from reaching 50 points. The Rockets' protection of the paint didn't seem to exist in front of Morant, who went 11-for-18 in the restricted area and made 11 of the 13 free throws he earned.
It's hard to say on which stage the Rockets are at the moment. On one hand, Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun already began to turn their talents and potential into remarkable performances on the floor. Even the Grizzlies, with their brutal defense, couldn't stop Green and Sengun from dropping 33 points and a double-double of 23 points and 12 rebounds respectively. On the other hand, however, the team didn't seem solid enough to compete for a playoff berth judging by the their panic in the fourth quarter of Friday's game.
Anfernee Simons (C) of the Portland Trail Blazers shoots in the game against the Phoenix Suns at Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, October 21, 2022. /CFP
Phoenix Suns 111-113 Portland Trail Blazers
Damian Lillard generated the second 40+ points game of the 2022-23 NBA regular season only hours after Morant did. He drained five triples and went 12-for-12 at the free throw line to get 41 points for Rip City at home. Jusuf Nurkic couldn't contain Deandre Ayton, but he made fair contributions with a double-double of 20 points and 17 rebounds.
Nonetheless, Anfernee Simons, who signed a four-year, $100 million extension with the Trail Blazers, made the game-winning play in overtime (OT) at Moda Center. At 0:22 during OT, Lillard faced double-teaming of Devin Booker and Chris Paul at the top of the key. He passed the ball to Simons, who then beat last season's All-Defensive First Team member Mikal Bridges and made the shot over him as the game-deciding play for the Trail Blazers.
The Suns had the chance to tie the game. Booker, who already scored 33 points for the Suns before the last moment of the game, drove deep into the opponents' paint and drew attention of both Josh Hart and Nurkic before kicking it to Ayton. However, Ayton failed to put the ball into the net before Nurkic stopped him with a foul. Ayton missed the first free throw, shot the second attempt to the glass on purpose. Jock Landale grabbed the offensive rebound, but his putback layup didn't drop.
New Orleans Pelicans 124-112 Charlotte Hornets
San Antonio Spurs 137-134 Indiana Pacers
Chicago Bulls 100-102 Washington Wizards
Boston Celtics 111-104 Miami Heat
Detroit Pistons 106-130 New York Knicks
Utah Jazz 132-126 Minnesota Timberwolves