DENVER — It didn’t matter that the No. 1 seed had long been sealed, or that all of Denver’s normal starters were in street clothes on Sunday afternoon.
The Nuggets needed a win, to snap a three-game losing streak, to establish something positive ahead of the postseason, or, at minimum, because fans packed Ball Arena for another sellout crowd. Against the No. 3 seed Kings, who played their starters for the first half, Denver found its mojo again in the regular season finale. The Nuggets’ 109-95 win was an emphatic defensive statement by players who might not see the court in the postseason.
Fortunately, the next time Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr. and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope see the floor, the playoffs will be here. Who Denver will face won’t be determined until the end of this week’s play-in tournament.
