The Knicks embarked on their five-game road trip riding a winning streak and full of confidence. However, those good feelings evaporated in a loss to the Utah Jazz on Saturday night. Now, New York heads to Denver to face the Nuggets on Monday.
New York’s four-game winning streak had helped stabilize an up-and-down start to the season, but poor shooting and weak defense led to their defeat against the struggling Jazz. The Knicks nearly overcame a 19-point deficit but ultimately fell 121-106.
The Knicks will need to regroup quickly against a high-scoring Denver team. The Nuggets, tied for fifth in the NBA with an average of 117.5 points per game, have been effective despite missing Aaron Gordon for three weeks and Nikola Jokic for three games due to the birth of his second child.
Karl-Anthony Towns, who spent nine seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, will shoulder the challenge of trying to stop Jokic, the three-time and reigning MVP.
If the Knicks can’t contain the Nuggets defensively, they’ll need to step up their offensive game, something they struggled with against Utah.
Denver comes off a back-to-back set that ended on a high note with a commanding 127-102 win over the Lakers on Saturday night. The Nuggets had blown a late lead at home against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday but rebounded to secure the win in Los Angeles.
That victory marked No. 433 for Nuggets coach Michael Malone, making him the winningest coach in franchise history, surpassing Doug Moe. It was a welcome relief after Denver’s NBA Cup loss to the Mavericks, where they were outscored 15-7 in the final three minutes of the 123-120 defeat.
Though the Nuggets miss Gordon, Peyton Watson has stepped up in his absence.
Watson is averaging 10.0 points per game and has been a strong defensive presence, averaging a team-best 1.1 blocks per game. He recorded three blocks in Friday night’s loss.
Watson has also benefited from playing alongside Jokic, who leads the NBA in rebounds per game (13.9) and is second in assists per contest (11.3).
