DENVER DEFEAT IN THE DERBY: Defense limp, talent of Jokic and Murray insufficient against the leader Detroit! (VIDEO)

Another derby, another defeat for Denver! Tonight, the Nuggets lost in an exciting finish to the best team in the East, the Detroit Pistons, and neither the return of Christian Braun nor Nikola Jokic in the starting lineup helped them, 124-121!

This game was another proof that the team from Colorado has nothing good to hope for in the playoffs if they do not urgently start playing much better defense than has been the case so far. It is all too plush and porous, the paint is not boxed out and opposing players easily finish plays under the rim, and a part of the criticism for that is deserved by Jokic as well.

The Serb tonight finally played the minutes of a starter, so in almost 33 minutes on the floor, he scored 24 points (19-9 shooting, 5-3 triples), had 15 rebounds and “only” 4 assists, with 5 turnovers and 2 steals.

In the visiting team, Murray also gave a good performance with 32 points and 8 good passes, Watson had 17, and Strawther flashed with 15 (8 rebounds).

The winning team was led by Cunningham with 29 points and 10 assists, while Robinson with 20 and Duren with 19 (13rb) also stood out.

Denver lost touch with San Antonio and is now 3rd in the West with a record of 33-18, while Detroit reigns supreme over the Eastern Conference with a score of 37-12.

The Nuggets play their next game as early as tomorrow at Madison Square Garden against a strong New York.