NFL Tickets
The Denver Nuggets improved to 7-6 on the season over the Golden State Warriors Friday evening. Although it was the second consecutive game the the Nuggets found themselves relying on yet another pivotal third quarter comeback.
The Warriors missed their first nine shots in the third, allowing the Nuggets to come up with a game deciding 17-0 run. A momentum that carried through into the fourth, as they used a 9-0 run with 10 minutes remaining to push their lead to 91-74 with 7:28 remaining.
Sparked by career game with the Nuggets from Andre Iguodala, a resurgence from Ty Lawson, and Danilo Gallinari’s third straight game scoring at least 19 points, Denver improved to 2-0 on the season against Golden State in the 102-91 win.
But as always, what good is a win unless I get to over-analyze and overreact to each players performance?
Still a win? Well, you’re stuck with me anyway. (players will not appear if they did not play at least 15 minutes*)
Danilo Gallinari: B+
Gallo’s performance was exactly the kind of production that Nuggets’ fans would love to see nightly. While his 0-5 from downtown fell right in line with his extremely troubling 22 percent from three for the season, he still finished with 20 points on 8-20 shooting. The Nuggets are now 4-0 when Gallinari scores at least 19 points. His 7 rebounds, coupled with a steal and a block round out his stat line nicely.
Kenneth Faried: B+
The fact Faried has pulled down over 10 rebounds in 9 of the Nuggets 13 contests is pretty mind-boggling. But then again, I guess we call him the Manimal for a reason. That said, it was a scrappy night for Faried defensively, as he spent most of the night tasseling with David Lee on the boards and on the block. While Lee still finished with a 20 point, 10 rebound performance, Faried notched 2 steals and a block on the evening and remained a disruptive defensive presence out to the three point line. He finished the night with a typical 9 point and 11 rebound performance, as well as his immeasurable impact in hustle plays.
Kosta Koufos: C
He’s a blue collar center, and that’s why we love him. He continued his trend of doing nothing spectacular but sill making enough of a presence to keep us from outright revolting at the fact he’s starting over JaVale McGee. He finished with 2 points, 5 rebounds and an assist.
Andre Iguodala: A+
Iguodala erupted for 29 points and enjoyed his first breakout scoring performance as a Nugget. He shot 11-19 from the the field and posted his second straight game shooting over 50 percent from the arc. However, he still remained a defensive stalwart, as he recorded two blocks despite his scoring his outburst. He’s averaging 23.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2 assists and is shooting 51 percent in Denver’s last two wins.
Ty Lawson: A
18 points, 9 assists, 2 steals, 7-13 shooting. Don’t say those numbers out loud, don’t say 50 percent out loud. Just take a deep breath and smile.
JaVale McGee: B
Imagine that, George Karl actually played McGee more than 20 minutes. Granted, it wasn’t his best showing this season. He shot 2-7 for 6 points, and only hauled in 6 rebounds. But we can all remain hopeful that his three blocks might be enough to see his minutes uptick slightly.
Corey Brewer: B+
Four steals.
Andre Miller: B-
It was subpar statistical night for Miller, but his presence plays so much into the Nuggets pacing that his 6 points and 4 assists are really just a drop in the ocean for what he provides in leadership.
The Denver Nuggets will look to extend their win streak to four against the New Orleans Hornets at home Sunday, Nov 25th. You can catch the game live at 6 PM ET on NBA League Pass.
Follow @dannynicks4
Share 
