Houston Rockets

Houston, We're all Good Here: How the Denver Nuggets can beat the Rockets

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Dec 14, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Houston Rockets guard Patrick Beverley (2) shoots the ball over Denver Nuggets guard Jameer Nelson (1) during the second half at Pepsi Center. The Nuggets won 114-108. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Nuggets just suffered another crushing loss at home and now they square off against the league’s spiciest chef… James Harden.

There seems to be a pretty noticeable trend this season for the Denver Nuggets. Unfortunately, that trend is heartbreak. While many of the other teams in the Northwest are at .500 or above, the Nuggets find themselves on the outside looking in.

They’ve suffered numerous heartbreaking finishes this season, both at home and away, and their last game against the Heat was no different. Denver came back from a lofty deficit in the third quarter only to have it slip through their hands in the fourth quarter.

You can read more about this game in a post by Evan Gould, right here.

Now, I realize that to many Nuggets fans that these games would be met with some frustration. But it’s important to remember that this season -much like this team- is still very young, and there’s still plenty of time for the Nuggets to correct their current course. For a team this young, that means taking it one game at a time. That starts with their upcoming game against the Houston Rockets.

This game is scheduled to tip-off at about 8:30 PM Mountain Time, at the Pepsi Center. It is also slated to be nationally televised on ESPN.

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This may also be the Nuggets best chance to prove their worth over the next few games because, well… to put it nicely, their upcoming opponents aren’t really that good. Over the next ten games they play teams like the 76ers, Nets, Wizards, Magic, Mavericks, Knicks, Mavericks again…I think you get the point.

Bottom line is that if they want to prove themselves as a legitimate playoff contender, they’ll need to beat these Rockets. So with that in mind, here are two thing the Nuggets should do if they want to win this game:

Nov 17, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) signals a play against the Portland Trail Blazers during the first quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

Let the League’s Spiciest Chef be Just That

Let’s be completely honest here, James Harden has had an incredible season so far. I mean seriously, this dude has a legitimate chance at leading the league in both scoring and assists. A feat that hasn’t been done since ‘Tiny’ Archibald.

How awesome is that?!

What’s even more strange is that Harden isn’t an anomaly this season. There are a few other players in the league this year -namely Russell Westbrook, Anthony Davis and DeMar DeRozan- who have each had historically fantastic seasons. Now, if you’re a fan of the Denver Nuggets then you’ll have noticed something about those players: they’ve each dominated the Nuggets.

In their games against DeRozan, Westbrook and Davis the Nuggets have been tragically embarrassed. The reason: they’ve focused to heavily on stopping them. I know it sounds strange, but the Nuggets have been too focused on stopping individuals instead of an entire team.

This hurts the Nuggets because their essentially nullifying their depth, which is by far their greatest strength. They’re one of the deepest rosters in the entire NBA and in order to use that to their advantage, they have to let Harden be Harden.

By that I mean that they should only focus on shutting down Houston’s supporting cast, effectively forcing James Harden to win this one on his own. Hopefully, that means that the Denver Nuggets can simply overwhelm this Houston Rockets team.

Nov 20, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) during the game against the Utah Jazz at Pepsi Center. The Nuggets won 105-91. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

It’s Time to Join Team Arrow

Another way for the Nuggets to win this game is by starting their own superhero: the Blue Arrow. For those who don’t know, the Blue Arrow is Jamal Murray (I’m really hoping that Oliver Queen isn’t upset about me outing Murray here).

Murray has had an interesting season to say the least. He started the year 0 for 17 from the field, but since then he’s been highest scoring rookie in the Western Conference. Along with his scoring surge, his overall production to the Nuggets has greatly improved as well.

So much so that it’s probably time for him to start.

I know it’s seems pretty unusual to start a rookie shooting guard alongside a not-so efficient point guard in his sophomore season, but hey… success isn’t always found under normal conditions. Also, whenever Murray and Mudiay find time on the court together they are oddly successful. Especially whenever they play alongside by Nikola Jokic.

Perhaps the best part is that the Mudiay-Murray team-up can happen without disrupting Mudiay’s chemistry with Gary Harris.

So, I say why not? I mean, the Nuggets have nothing to lose by starting Murray, and every thing to gain. Hopefully Mike Malone can find a way to start, and finish with this duo, because so far this season the only two players who haven’t shied away from the big shot are Murray and Mudiay.

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