Bench production could be the difference as Nuggets host Mavs
Denver's biggest question mark coming into the season was if the bench was good enough to keep the team in games or stretch leads.
For the last few games, the Nuggets' reserves have played well, but that hasn't been the case for the Dallas Mavericks. Coach Jason Kidd was critical of his bench after Friday's last-second loss to the Suns, and it's an issue of concern heading into Sunday night's game in Denver.
Only two Dallas reserves played significant minutes Friday night - Spencer Dinwiddie (28) and Dwight Powell (26) - and the bench combined for just nine points. It has forced Kidd to play stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving more than 40 minutes.
"The fatigue of running Luka and Kyrie 40-something minutes because our bench stinks right now. ... As deep as we are, we've got to get someone to participate off the bench," Kidd said. "Somebody has to join the party to help Kyrie and Luka. That's just not happening right now."
Doncic and Irving are averaging 37.2 and 35.7 minutes, respectively, and are the top two scorers on the team. Injuries have hurt the rotation, as P.J. Washington (knee), Maxi Kleber (hamstring) and Dereck Lively II (shoulder) were all out against the Suns.
The injuries and bench aren't the only thing concerning Kidd - it's his team's slow starts. The Mavericks trailed by 13 at halftime Friday night before rallying to tie it late.
"For whatever reason, we get off to a slow start," Kidd said after the game. "It's got to be addressed. We've talked about it; there's got to be action. Somebody's got to come with some energy. We're flat."
Denver has started slow several times but has rallied to win three of those games. The Nuggets, after an 0-2 start, have won four straight and six of the last seven with strong play from the reserves.
The bench didn't score much in the 135-122 win over the Heat on Friday night, but Russell Westbrook had 10 assists and Julian Strawther and Hunter Tyson played solid minutes. Westbrook started the previous three games for Jamal Murray (concussion), but Murray returned Friday to score a season-high 28 points.
"Felt good. Head feels OK. Just happy to be out there and playing with the team again," Murray said.
Denver is also without starting power forward Aaron Gordon (right calf strain) for multiple weeks, though Peyton Watson has played well in his spot. It helps having Nikola Jokic in the lineup, too. The three-time MVP is making a case for a fourth with his play in the first nine games.
Jokic entered Saturday fifth in scoring (28.9 points a game) and first in rebounds (13.2) and assists (11.3), and had his fifth triple-double of the season Friday night. He is the focus of every opponent's defense and finds an open teammate when he is double-teamed.
"Playing with Nikola helps everybody. He puts it in the right spots," said Christian Braun, who had 21 points against the Heat. "You get a lot of easy looks, you get a lot of easy ones early that give you confidence."
