Last time the Brooklyn Nets played the Denver Nuggets before Sunday’s matchup, they lost, even though they had Kyrie Irving — who was dealing with the early stages of his right shoulder impingement. Brooklyn also had to take on Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray without Caris LeVert in the previous contest.
The Nets didn’t have either on Sunday. In the end, Brooklyn found a way to knock off the tough Western Conference opponent without their elite backcourt.
While Spencer Dinwiddie and Jarrett Allen continue to provide offense for the Nets, the team’s scoring is not what defines this group without Irving and LeVert. After the win, Dinwiddie explained what makes the team tick and why they’ve found success without their stars:
The guys that are still in this locker room, not only believe, but know that we can compete at a high level. Coaching staff knows that. As long as we play defense, as long as we hold people to around a hundred points, we feel like we can score enough to win. That’s gonna kind of be the hallmark of this group: defense and, kinda, that scrappiness.