National Basketball Association

Denver Nuggets Conquer the LA Lakers behind Barton and Nurkic

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 2:04 p.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

foxsports

Oct 7, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Will Barton (5) drives against Los Angeles Lakers guard Louis Williams (23) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Nuggets saw their preseason record go to 2-0 as they conquered the Lakers in Los Angeles in an exciting comeback win, 101-97.

This exciting game was the definition of a preseason game. And, that was definitely in Denver’s favor.

The Nuggets, who were down nine at half, showed several weaknesses in the first half, but they ultimately made a comeback behind Jamal Murray.

Before the game even started, the players lined up and locked arms as the National Anthem was sang. This has been a common act for several NBA teams throughout the preseason.

Here is a little rundown of the key players in this game:

More from Nugg Love

Jamal Murray: 16 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists

Will Barton: 20 points, 3 rebounds

D’Angelo Russell: 21 points, 4 threes

Jordan Clarkson: 15 points

Overall, the Nuggets should have lost this game after being completely annihilated by Laker point guard D’Angelo Russell. The Nuggets were exploited multiple times by the high screen and role, and guards Russell and Clarkson both hurt Denver in transition.

For the Nuggets, Will Barton gave them the electrifying edge that they needed. Running, looking for lobs, catching and shooting his shot- Will Barton was the key man for Denver.

Adding to that, the Nuggets bench was laughable outscored. They were outscored 16-0 at one point in this game.

If they would have kept the gas on, the Lakers could have easily came away with the win. But, it is preseason.

With that said, let’s check out the grades from the Nuggets key players.

Game Grades

Two Nuggets started stood out while one was horrifically outplayed.

Jusuf Nurkic- A-

Jusuf Nurkic battled tonight. He ended with 18 points and 14 rebounds on 5-12 shooting.

While Nurkic was a presence both on both sides of the court, it would nice to see him a little more effective. He missed several bunnies down low, but he has overall been able to show his impact throughout this entire preseason.

Oh, and he had this poster.

Will Barton- A

From running the floor to spotting up to impacting the game in every aspect, Will Barton was the overall avenger for the Nuggets tonight.

He finished the game with 20 points on 6-of-14 shooting and 2-of-4 from three. Barton got the shot at the spotting spot with Harris out 4-6 weeks with a groin issue. While the team did miss Harris, Barton flew in and provided a nice productive hand.

He was also able to make a highlight real moment.

Two up and now one down:

Emmanuel Mudiay- C-

While Emmanuel Mudiay did show glimpses of beauty throughout this game, the majority of this game was spent being burned by the Lakers Russell.

Russell hit four threes and scored 21 points while Emmanuel Mudiay was able to rack up just 4 points on 2-10 shooting in 24 minutes.

It was a pretty brutal game for Mudiay as this was a highly anticipated matchup of last years star rookies. But, it was pretty obvious who won this fight.

Mudiay will get another shot at Russell on Sunday, and hopefully the tides turn.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, the Nuggets won this game, but ultimately they were shown many areas that they can work on. While their pick-and-roll defense is still weak, the Nuggets will need to formulate several ways to slow the opponents down.

It should be noted that Gallo, Faried, Arthur, and Harris were all out tonight.

Be ready for the Nuggets to take on the Lakers again on Sunday night!

This article originally appeared on

share

Get more from National Basketball Association Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic

National Basketball Association