A week ago, it appeared the next time the Denver Nuggets returned home, their stay might include packing for the summer.
Instead, the Nuggets went on the road where they revived their championship level of play.
After losing the first two games at home to fall behind 2-0 in the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Nuggets went to the Midwest, where they won Games 3 and 4 to even the series 2-2.
The Nuggets now are poised to take the lead in the series when the teams meet for Game 5 at Denver on Tuesday night.
The Nuggets looked out of sync while going down 0-2 to Minnesota but three days between Games 2 and 3 gave them a chance to regroup. Now, the Timberwolves need to turn things around or risk facing elimination at home in Game 6.
Denver’s biggest turnaround has taken place on offense. The Nuggets shot 55.3 percent over the last two games and initiated their offense more quickly.
It has helped that Jamal Murray — listed questionable for Tuesday — is moving better on his sore left calf and is scoring like he did in last year’s postseason, His revival was highlighted with his 55-foot halftime buzzer-beater in Game 4 that capped an 8-0 rally in the final 20 seconds of the second quarter.
To Denver coach Michael Malone, it has been all about his team showing its championship experience.
“They were quick to write us off, but these guys, we won a championship a year ago,” Malone said. “We went into Miami (in the NBA Finals) and won two games in a row. This team has been tested time and time again, and we found a way to solve whatever’s been thrown at us.”
It will take more for the Timberwolves than Anthony Edwards scoring 44 points as he did in a 115-107 loss on Sunday night to shift the momentum.
Edwards, Minnesota’s rising star, hasn’t received much help from the rest of the team in the last two games. Karl-Anthony Towns, the other No. 1 overall pick on the roster, scored just 27 points in the last two games combined. He took only seven shots in Game 3 then went 5 of 18 in Game 4 to finish with 13 points.
The Timberwolves need more from Towns to counter Denver’s suddenly balanced attack.
“He’s a superstar,” Edwards said of Towns. “He gets paid to put the ball in the rim. I always tell him, ‘Don’t you ever stop shooting the ball because you missed five or six. I don’t give a damn. In order for us to win, we need you to score.'”
Towns isn’t the only player who regressed in Minnesota’s two home games. While veteran guard Mike Conley has played well, center Naz Reid averaged 15 points in the two wins and 9.5 points in the losses. And the Nuggets have been able to score on Rudy Gobert, the four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Denver can rely on Murray and three-time MVP Nikola Jokic but also got a boost from the supporting cast. Aaron Gordon had a near-perfect shooting performance in Game 4, while going 10-for-11 from the field, and has also defended Towns and Edwards at times.
“Nikola’s going to do what he does … but what Aaron is doing in terms of the offense, the shot-making, the play-making, the physicality, the defense on two All-Stars, so much is being asked of him right now,” Malone said.
–Field Level Media
