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Denver Nuggets 123-128 Detroit Pistons
Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets tussles with Thon Maker of the Detroit Pistons in the game at the Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, February 2, 2020. /VCG Photo
Nikola Jokic again proved why he's not to be ignored in any discussion over who the best center is in today's league – the 24-year-old Serbian big guy dropped 39 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists in Denver's game against Detroit at the Little Caesars Arena on Sunday.
As Denver had multiple key players – Jamal Murray, Paul Millsap, Michael Porter Jr., Mason Plumlee – sit on Sunday's game, Jokic needed to do more in offense. He got eight points, five rebounds and four assists in the first half and was 9-10 in the first half to score 19 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets tries to pass the ball to his teammate in the game against the Detroit Pistons at the Little Caesars Arena, February 2, 2020. /VCG Photo
Having played 39 minutes, Jokic ended taking his 10th triple-double this season. It's also the 54th game in his career for him to reach double figures in assists. No other seven-footer (2.13 meters) in today's NBA can match Jokic in this area. Joel Embiid who did it for the second-most time only had two of such games.
However, Jokic's efforts did not lead the nuggets to victory. Despite that they had five players score double-digit points, their opponents, the Pistons delivered better teamwork as seven of their guys reach double figure. Bruce Brown and Reggie Jackson made key contributions off the bench as Brown put down a double-double of 19 points, 10 rebounds and Jackson got 20 points, six assists.
Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets and Andre Drummond #0 of the Detroit Pistons compete for the ball in the game at the Little Caesars Arena, February 2, 2020. /VCG Photo
In fact, this is not the first time for the Nuggets to lose to a weak team – the Pistons are 11th in the East – in the Eastern Conference. Having lost a total of 16 games so far this season, the Nuggets had been defeated by the Atlanta Hawks, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Washington Wizards and Sunday's Pistons, all teams that remained bottom 6 in the East for a long time.
Nonetheless, when Denver took on strong opponents, they could become a totally different team. For example, less than 48 hours ago, with a nine-player roster, Denver beat the league's leading team, the Milwaukee Bucks at the Fiserv Forum. They have also claimed victories over other champion candidates like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Clippers.
Derrick Rose #25 of the Detroit Pistons handles the ball in the game against the Denver Nuggets at the Little Caesars Arena, February 2, 2020. /VCG Photo
Not everything was pleasant for Detroit in Sunday's game. Their best-performing player this season, Derrick Rose who already dropped 20+points in 15 straight games, had to quit Sunday's game early because of a sore left groin.
As the trade deadline (February 6) is approaching, Rose's name was understandably mentioned more and more in various reports about possible deals. Judging by his performance and status, Rose is definitely the most valuable asset of the Pistons which wanted a lottery draft pick in return.
New Orleans Pelicans 109-118 Houston Rockets
Jame Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets shoots the ball the game against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, February 2, 2020. /AP Photo
James Harden finally shook off his recent sluggish performance by putting down 40 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists to help the Rockets defeat the visiting Pelicans at the Toyota Center, putting an end to the opponents' three-win-streak. Russell Westbrook and Ben McLemore both got 22 points.
Despite the loss, Pelicans fans should be happy to see that their team's young pair of Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson are able to contend with Harden and Westbrook, one of the best pairs in the league. Ingram dropped 28 points and 12 rebounds. In the third quarter, he had 16 of the team's 33 points, helping the Pelicans come back from a five-point trail (65-60) in the first half to one-point lead (93-92).
Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans handles the ball in the game against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center, February 2, 2020. /AP Photo
Williamson received 33 minutes on the court in Sunday's game to score 21 points and 10 rebounds. In the six games has played so far, the 19-year-old averaged 19.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. When Williamson was on the court, the Pelicans' offensive and defensive ratings were 118.1 and 101.1 respectively; when he was on the bench , the two numbers fell to 109.5 and 112.8.
Besides scoring directly, Williamson could damage the opponents' defense in other ways. 78 percent of his shooting happened in the paint at a field goal rate of 69 percent and he could earn fouls in 16.7 percent of the possessions. Besides, Williamson could grab over three offensive rebounds per game.
No wonder New Orleans' head coach Alvin Gentry was upset about Williamson being unable to get the ball in the fourth quarter. "We didn't execute and we didn't do what we were supposed to do. Being said, Zion can't go four minutes without touching the basketball and that's on me. That's something that I've got to make sure that will never happen again. So I take responsibility for that. And if we're not gonna give it to him and not gonna execute, then we gotta have different people in the game. That's on me also," said Gentry after the game.
Other games on Sunday (home teams in bold ):
Phoenix Suns 108-129 Milwaukee Bucks
Chicago Bulls 102-129 Toronto Raptors
