Nikola Jokic, Nuggets pound Kings to snap two-game losing streak

Nikola Jokic’s passing is infectious. Against the Kings, his full squad caught the bug.

The Nuggets scrambled Sacramento, 121-111, connected Friday night, snapping a two-game losing streak and sharing the hoops successful a mode that undoubtedly met Jokic’s approval.

The Nuggets whipped 32 passes to conscionable 8 turnovers. Seven guys finished successful treble figures. It was an all-encompassing session that saw galore players payment from Denver’s unselfishness.

“Seventy points successful the paint,” acting caput manager Popeye Jones said. “That’s a large number, that’s a season-high.”

Jokic paced the squad with 33 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists, but helium was hardly alone. Will Barton had 10 points and six assists, portion some Jeff Green and JaMychal Green benefitted simply by cutting.

“They bash a bully occupation really of taking distant the 3-point line,” Jones said. ” … You tin people wrong connected them.”

Now 19-18, the Nuggets caput retired connected the road, again, for a contention Sunday astatine Oklahoma City.

Outside of De’Aaron Fox, the Kings presented fewer threats. The shifty defender poured successful 30 points successful the loss.

Careless turnovers fueled a 12-4 Sacramento tally retired of halftime, repeating a signifier that’s plagued the Nuggets each season. After a timeout, the Nuggets got backmost to playing their selfless style. Barton acceptable JaMychal Green up with back-to-back dunks, earlier Jokic asserted himself.

Despite mounting vexation with the officials, Jokic dropped his enarthrosis and bullied the Kings’ interior defense. With diversion spins and a deft touch, helium poured successful 12 successful the 4th to assistance re-establish Denver’s momentum. Once helium went to the bench, Facu Campazzo recovered Jeff Green for back-to-back soaring jams, and the Nuggets carried a 96-85 pb into the fourth.

Green came disconnected the seat successful his archetypal crippled backmost since exiting protocols, ceding the commencement to JaMychal Green, who was impactful arsenic some a roller and a rebounder.

The Nuggets got much bully quality erstwhile 4 coaches returned to their mean posts against the Kings arsenic well.

“Hopefully the pb vocalist volition beryllium backmost soon,” Jones said of Michael Malone, who missed his 4th consecutive crippled to wellness and information protocols.

The Nuggets had capable information arsenic it was trying to combat for presumption successful the West. But Sacramento might’ve drawn a small spot much retired of them.

“They swept america past year,” Jones said. “Guys were successful the locker country really earlier our gathering talking astir that.”

Watching the Nuggets’ seat the archetypal fractional Friday nighttime was astir arsenic entertaining arsenic the on-court product. Each highlight-level walk – and determination were galore arsenic the Nuggets rung up a 66-54 halftime pb – elicited immoderate jubilant absorption from Denver’s seat mob.

When Jokic whipped a no-look bounce walk to JaMychal Green successful transition, Jamal Murray started hopping up and down with his hands connected his head. After Bones Hyland danced with the ball, shaking escaped of Sacramento large antheral Tristan Thompson for a 3-pointer, Monte Morris imitated the creation connected the sidelines.

As the Nuggets walked to the locker room, Barton couldn’t assistance but rap on to “Rapper’s Delight,” a country arsenic indicative of the temper arsenic any.

The Nuggets picked isolated the Kings’ disconnected defence for 18 first-half assists connected 26 made tract goals. The question was incessant and often rewarded with a pass. After serving up Aaron Gordon for an casual first-quarter dunk, the Nuggets’ champion aerial enactment returned the favour to Jokic, who hammered a dunk of his own.