The Denver Nuggets took down the Atlanta Hawks, 141-111, at State Farm Arena on Sunday night. They ended the home team’s win streak at six games behind Nikola Jokic’s monstrous performance- 48 points, 14 rebounds, eight dimes, and three steals for the three-time Most Valuable Player. Quin Snyder referenced Denver’s superstar as “the best player in the world” in his postgame press conference.
While Atlanta has enjoyed a clean injury status over this stretch, Jalen Johnson (right shoulder soreness) and Bogdan Bogdanović (left quad contusion) missed this game. Larry Nance Jr., who had 16 points, started in Johnson’s place. Without Bogdanović, Garrison Mathews returned to the rotation, and for the second consecutive game, Vít Krejčí got the nod at backup point guard over Kobe Bufkin.
Jamal Murray was sidelined due to a right hamstring issue, so both teams were without key guys. However, the Nuggets’ offense dominated the entire game, scoring at least 33 points in every frame and shooting 63% from the field. Jokić did not do it alone. Christian Braun and Michael Porter Jr. stepped up without Murray for 26 and 17 points, respectively. Aaron Gordon was the only Nuggets player to shoot less than 50% from the field.
Atlanta came out slow on both sides of the ball. Denver quickly built a 15-8 advantage after three early Hawks’ turnovers.
After the game, Snyder said, “We weren’t good on either defense or offense, and we lacked urgency on the defensive end.”
It was evident early, as the home team could find quality looks and got beat on many cuts to the rim. Jokić dominated in the paint early, leading his squad on an 11-2 to go up 38-23 after the first frame. Atlanta shot 7-23 from the field and did not make a three in eight tries.
Denver stretched its lead out to 20 points early in the second quarter. The Hawks put together a 6-0 run with Jokić off the floor and attacked the paint more than they did in the first frame. Atlanta cut the deficit to 13 points, but when the superstar and Russell Westbrook came back in, they made a concerted effort to push the ball ahead. Christian Braun got easy looks off leak-out passes as a result. The Nuggets ended the half on a 9-2 run, punctuated by Jokić’s 40-foot three, giving Denver a 71-48 lead. The Hawks only turned the ball over four times but shot 33% from the field compared to the Nuggets’ 61%.
Atlanta put together a 16-2 run in the third frame to cut Denver’s lead to 20 points, but the Nuggets started the fourth quarter hot to put the game out of reach.
De’Andre Hunter led the Hawks with 20 points (7-20 FG), and Dyson Daniels added 18 points, five steals, and six assists. Trae Young shot 6-15 from the field for 15 points and 10 dimes, while Onyeka Okongwu added 14 points and nine boards off the bench.
Atlanta faces the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden at 7:00 E.T. on Wednesday in the quarter-finals of the NBA Cup. Whenever the Knicks and Hawks meet in an important game, fireworks often happen. Fans will not want to miss this one.
