Nuggets smother Celtics in season-best defensive showing

DENVER — The Boston Celtics lead the East in three-point attempts, so naturally Nikola Jokic decided to beat them at their own game — hoisting 13 shots from deep as part of his 30-point night as the Denver Nuggets powered to a 103-84 win Wednesday night at Ball Arena.

For the Nuggets, who have had a strangely hard time winning at home, it may have been a return to normalcy in their own building after a chaotic restart to the season following the All-Star break that included two late collapses and the franchise record for points on the road in a win against Portland. Denver is now 37-22 on the year, 16-11 at home.

It was Jokic doing the heavy lifting, and the Nuggets needed even more out of their three-time MVP on Wednesday as Jamal Murray left in the first half with an illness and did not return. Peyton Watson, Aaron Gordon and Jalen Pickett remain out, which led to some extended real minutes from the recently signed former CU Buffs star KJ Simpson.

“That’s a professional player,” David Adelman said of Simpson being sprung into action. “That’s what you look for when you sign these guys. These two-ways, your front office is looking for people that are quality people, ready to play. Really cool for KJ. I know he had a lot of fans here, people who know who he is from his time at Boulder.”

But most impressive? It was the fewest points the Nuggets have allowed all season, holding the on-a-back-to-back Celtics to just 19 points in the third quarter and 17 in the fourth. Denver sweeps the season series against one of the best teams of the decade.

“It’s one thing to talk about it, talk about it to the media, show film, but you have to go do it,” Adelman said. “We have gotten to this point with our win total because of our offense, that’s the bottom line. But for us to do anything uniquely special this season, our defense has to come along, and tonight was a good example of it.”

Boston came out physical, building an eight-point lead in the second quarter, but something clicked late in the first half. Bruce Brown was a catalyst, pressing at halfcourt and making life miserable for Jaylen Brown and the Celtics’ shooters as the game wore on.

“The whole film session with Golden State was they were starting their offense wherever the hell they wanted to start it,” Adelman said. “It was guys dribbling into the elbow without being touched into dribble handoffs. It just wasn’t good enough. In our league right now, that’s the area where you can get physical.”

Brown finished with four points, four rebounds, five assists and two steals, but his impact got the crowd humming, as did Red Panda at halftime.

But nothing got the crowd roaring like Simpson.

The former CU star, who attended the Nuggets’ 2023 championship parade as a fan, didn’t show up Wednesday expecting to play. He warmed up — “it seems like four hours before the game,” Adelman joked — and waited. Then Murray got sick.

“Everything,” Simpson said of what it means to do this in Colorado. “It’s full circle. God don’t make no mistakes. Just because you can’t see the future or you don’t know what the plan is doesn’t mean it’s not for you.”

Simpson finished with two points, four rebounds, four assists and a steal in 14 minutes, posting a plus-13 rating, including a breakaway dunk that brought the building to its feet.

Fellow Buff Derrick White trailed the play, unable to add to his three blocks.

“He was saying he should have went up to try and block it because I didn’t get up that high,” Simpson said with a smile. “It’s great to see a fellow Buff, fellow brother, having success already. I kind of look up to him.”

As fun as the Simpson moment is, the Nuggets will turn their attention to Murray who played less than eight minutes.

“When I got here, I just went and said hi to him, and he looked awful,” Adelman said. “They gave him all the medication. It did not help. He said something in the starting lineup like, ‘Nothing’s really clicking here.’ And then all kinds of bodily things were happening. So he definitely went home.”

Murray’s status for Friday remains uncertain. Adelman said Thursday’s practice will be telling.

“Jamal’s played through all kinds of stuff,” Adelman said. “So if he says he’s sick, he’s really, really sick.”

So it came back to Jokic, who shot 11-of-28, including 4-of-13 from deep, adding 12 rebounds and six assists in 33 minutes. He eclipsed 1,000 made threes for his career on Wednesday, making him the fourth player in league history with that many hits from deep while scoring 20,000 points, snagging 9,000 rebounds and tossing 6,000 assists.

The supporting cast stepped up around him: Tim Hardaway Jr. added 14 points off the bench, while Julian Strawther scored 12, and Cameron Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas each chipped in 11.

What’s next for the Nuggets?

The Nuggets are right back on the road Friday, returning to the site of their playoff elimination last year for the first time. The Thunder are heavily banged up at the moment, and Denver may catch them without both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams. The Nuggets are back home Sunday afternoon to host their other recent playoff blemish — the Wolves.

“Tonight’s tonight. We’ll move on tomorrow to OKC,” Adelman said. “I know what’s next after that, I get the schedule, but the next one’s the most important. It’s a really quality opponent, the best team in our league the last few years.”

In front of a sellout crowd of 19,763, for one night at least, the Nuggets looked right.

“If we can get ourselves right, we’ll be a problem in that tournament, just like those other teams will be,” Adelman shared once again.

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