Denver's Comeback Ran Through Five Players, Not One
Denver erased a 15-point deficit against Chicago on Nikola Jokic's passing, then let its reserves finish the job.
The Nuggets trailed by as many as 15 before beating the Bulls 133-128 in preseason on October 11, with Jokic posting a triple-double and Aaron Gordon scoring 25 on 9-of-12 shooting. The five players who closed the final five minutes were not the five who built the lead.
A 15-point hole, erased by five
Chicago led by 15 before Denver pulled even and won 133-128 on October 11. Jokic finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, feeding Gordon for 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting and Cameron Johnson for 15 on 4-of-5 from three. Jamal Murray added 13 points and five assists. Eleven lead changes and 13 ties say more about how the game was played than the final score does.
The five who finished it
The lineup that closed the last five minutes was not Jokic, Murray and Gordon. It was Bryce Hopkins, Cam Whitmore, DaRon Holmes II, Ryan Nembhard and Trevon Brazile, with Holmes alone scoring 10 in the fourth. Starters scored 77, the bench 52, a split that shows the reserve group can hold a lead as well as build one.
Three days to the Clippers
Denver is off until October 14 at the Clippers, its fourth preseason game in ten days. The Nuggets had four days of rest before Chicago; the Bulls had one, playing their second game in seven days. That rest gap will close once games start to count.
What is still unresolved
A Hoops Rumors report on October 12 grouped Gordon, DeMar DeRozan, Julian Strawther and Alpha Diallo under one rotation-questions headline, without saying what the questions are. Spencer Jones' hamstring, day-to-day since October 2, has not been updated either. Denver has answers on the floor; it does not yet have them on the injury report.
Did Nikola Jokic have a triple-double against the Bulls?
Yes. He finished with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in Denver's 133-128 preseason win on October 11.
When do the Nuggets play next?
October 14 at the Clippers, the first of a short road trip before Denver visits the Lakers on October 16.
