Murray’s perfect touch enough for Nuggets to draw first blood against Wolves

It took some time for the Denver Nuggets to get going in Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but familiar faces lead the locals to a win over the rivals

BY JAKE SHAPIRO

Apr 18, 2026, 5:47 PM Updated: May 5, 2026, 7:40 pm

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DENVER — It took some time for the Denver Nuggets to get going in Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but a familiar playoff spark from Bruce Brown, a vintage postseason performance from Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic doing his everyday thing pushed the locals to a 116-105 win over their hated rival Saturday.

Brown energized. Murray shone. Aaron Gordon made a difference. Cameron Johnson stepped up. Christian Braun did enough. Tim Hardaway Jr. added a lift. And Jokic triple-doubled with a takeover late in what was a pretty grimy, gritty win to start this rubber-match rivalry series.

“It was a type of playoff game that you love to win, because it was kind of ugly,” Nuggets coach David Adelman said. “You start the game off, and you’re known for your offense, and we created really good looks. And then we were up against it right away. Just the reaction to that — staying together, winning a grimy game, it’s good. We’re going to have games where we shoot the hell out of it and everything looks pretty. There’s no difference. You just win the game.”

The Nuggets fell behind by 12 in the first quarter after shooting just 27% from the field and committing six turnovers. Jaden McDaniels got going quickly with 10 first-quarter points, including a flagrant foul on Murray that set an early, physical tone. Rudy Gobert was strong early, and Anthony Edwards’ and-one pushed Minnesota’s lead to 23-12 while Gordon picked up three fouls and was glued to the bench. Adelman came sprinting to midcourt to argue an offensive foul call on Gordon, earned a technical and lost the ensuing challenge. It was a brutal sequence that left Denver down 10 with no challenge and their most versatile defender in foul trouble.

“I think the first game is always — everybody’s got so much adrenaline, everybody’s excited, everybody’s a little bit nervous, some butterflies, which is human,” Murray said. “So I think it’s fun.”

Things looked like they could go sideways for Denver when Jokic took his normal rest to start the second quarter. But that’s when the 2023 championship-winning role player Brown remade his mark on the Nuggets in his first playoff game since hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

During a seven-minute stint in the second frame, Brown shot 2-of-4 from the field, grabbed four rebounds, dished two assists and swiped a steal. For the game, Brown finished with eight points, seven rebounds, three assists and five steals in 21 minutes — the kind of stat line that didn’t scream in the box score but got the fans at Ball Arena shouting.

“He just got into people,” Adelman said. “We needed buckets, and he really was the reason why we pushed that lead out. His activity was great. He told the line that you need to tell in the playoffs, bottom line.”

Murray went further.

“I think he’s our most effective on-ball defender,” Murray said. “When he comes in, he’s up underneath guys. He’s not even fouling, and if he does foul, he’s stopping them from getting two points. He has really good hands, plays with a lot of energy. Even if he doesn’t show up in a stat sheet — just a deflection that leads to a layup for somebody else — those plays change the game.”

It was Murray all night who carried the Nuggets. He finished with a game-high 30 points on 7-of-22 shooting with seven assists, getting to the free-throw line an absurd 16 times and hitting every single one of them. His runs in the middle portion of the game to lead Denver’s comeback and then extend the lead all the way to 15 were the star showing of the night, even though he missed all eight of his threes.

“Just toughness,” Adelman said of Murray’s approach. “He’s got a lot of responsibilities with a lot of different people guarding him that are high-level defenders. McDaniels, he works hard. Anthony Edwards is on him. This is a challenge. He just mentally fought through it. There were timely shots that he made — mid-range jump shots where they’re on a run. Unbelievable free-throw shooting. Mental toughness.”

Wolves coach Chris Finch saw it differently.

“The 16 free throws from Murray is a head-scratcher,” Finch said.

Murray’s 30-piece was his 20th career 30-point playoff game, tying Isiah Thomas for 45th all time. Only Jokic has more in franchise history with 36. The Nuggets are 15-5 in the playoffs when Murray hits that benchmark.

Gordon returned after the break and was a different player in the second half, finishing with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with four rebounds and an assist in the third quarter alone. A transition dunk followed by a pull-up three (the lone Nuggets make from deep in the second half) blew the lead to seven and the arena was up for grabs.

“When Aaron plays, we’re a different team,” Adelman said. “It’s not the stats, it’s the feel. We feel bigger because we are. His ball handling, the way he brings the ball up against pressure, and then taking on the physicality of what this all is.” Gordon finished with 17 points, eight rebounds — four offensive — and three assists.

But the Wolves fought back, hanging around to make it a two-point game very late. Minnesota clawed back from the 12-point deficit entering the fourth, riding Gobert’s physicality inside and Ayo Dosunmu’s 3-point shooting. Edwards’ pull-up three cut Denver’s lead to four at 93-89 with 8:32 remaining, and after a Gobert putback dunk and a Dosunmu driving layup, the deficit was down to just two at 97-95.

That’s when Jokic took over. He answered with a driving floater plus the foul on Gobert — the hoop and the harm — pushing the lead back to five. Then Brown swiped a steal from Randle, Murray missed a three, and Jokic grabbed the offensive rebound and tipped it in to put Denver ahead seven.

Jokic finished with 25 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists — patient early while Murray carried the load, devastating late when the game hung in the balance. He and Murray combined for 18 assists.

“Those guys are so patient,” Adelman said. “The number one thing for us in these situations is just to get a great shot. They take what the game gives them.”

The defining play came with just under two minutes left. After Edwards missed a contested 31-foot three, Jokic corralled the rebound. Denver’s ensuing possession was chaotic — Murray launched a 44-foot heave as the shot clock wound down, Brown grabbed the offensive rebound, and Gordon slammed it home to push the lead to 108-101. A selfless play by Murray after a selfish shot by Edwards. Pretty much the dagger.

Braun added 12 points and eight rebounds while shouldering the burden of guarding Edwards all day.

“CB does things for the right reasons. You can trust that,” Adelman said. “His eight rebounds — when you guard the best player on the other team and still get back into the fray and come up with defensive rebounds, that wins playoff games.”

Johnson chipped in 12 points, Hardaway added seven with a key block in the third, and Spencer Jones contributed five points in nine meaningful minutes after returning from a hamstring issue.

Edwards led the Wolves with 22 points on 7-of-19 shooting and didn’t look fully healthy. Gobert added 17 and 10 while Randle and McDaniels each scored 16.

“A lot of composure issues,” Finch said. “We’ve got to make smarter, more solid plays. Down seven with three minutes left, those plays really hurt us, especially against an experienced team.”

Denver committed nine turnovers in the first half that led to 13 points allowed but cleaned things up dramatically, committing just five turnovers for only four points in the second half. But the Nuggets stayed with it and adjusted, getting better as the game progressed. Now they’ll have to do that three more times against the Wolves and 15 more times for their goal.

What’s Next for the Nuggets

The Nuggets and Wolves are back at it for Game 2 from Ball Arena late Monday night, with an 8:30 p.m. tip time. Historically, teams that take a 1-0 lead in a playoff series go on to win it 76% of the time, and that number jumps even higher — to roughly 85% — when Game 1 is won at home. Denver went 23-19 in clutch games this season but has now won their last seven in a row and after this one, the Nuggets look like a team that found a switch, making it 13 wins in a row.