The Golden State Warriors put on a shooting clinic in the Chase Center Arena giving the crowd an intense playoff atmosphere from start to finish during the home opener. The Nuggets fell short of a win in OT taking their first loss of the season 131-137. Steph Curry (GS) and Aaron Gordon (DEN) were red hot all night as the top performers, proving that at any moment either one of them has the potential to take control of the court.
Aaron Gordon: 50 Points, 8 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 1 Block
Steph Curry: 42 Points, 6 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 3 Steals, 1 Block
Gordon jumped off the porch, firing away and didn’t let up until the whistle blew in OT. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for the Nuggets to get over the hump in the win column. The Nuggets contained Steph Curry through the entire first half only allowing him to score 7 points, but after halftime during the second half of the game Chef Curry was in “Kill Mode” and cooked the Nuggets with 35 points. Curry is a game closer, especially at home and this was a road game for Golden State.
After the game, the Nuggets HC David Adelman had this to say about the late game collapse to Curry and the Warriors:
“A few times we didn’t send [Curry] in the direction of the defense,” Adelman said. “If he gets the other way, there is no one on the other side of that pick. That’s what he’s got going. The shot he made to tie towards the end, it’s a shot that only he can make. Obviously, you have to be up more.”
This season-opener wasn’t exactly the outcome that the Nuggets were hoping for, especially with a killer performance from Aaron Gordon, and Denver’s MVP Nikola Jokic with his typical showman skills logging a triple-double with 21 points 13 rebounds, and 10 assists. The Golden State Warriors will always be a tough match regardless, and the Nuggets still looked like one of the league’s best teams with a promising playoff run.
Dante Robinson | Senior NBA Analyst for The NSR Network
