DENVER — The first ominous sign things were going very wrong Wednesday night for the Nuggets was Jameer Nelson walking off the court and toward the locker room with more than half of the first quarter still to play. He had been ejected after picking up two rapid-fire technical fouls for arguing his point after picking up two rapid-fire personal fouls.
A lot of things went to the locker room with him.
In the Nuggets’ 119-99 loss to the Grizzlies at the Pepsi Center, it was difficult to pinpoint what was most important. He was the starting point guard, and while Emmanuel Mudiay had returned from a back injury, he was restricted to just 20 minutes. That meant Jamal Murray became the ball handler of record, the rookie unexpectedly tasked with playing big minutes running the team. Shuffling the deck that much was tough.
Almost all of Mudiay’s minutes – 16 – were burned in the first half, relegating him to being a bit player in the second half. Meanwhile, the Nuggets struggled to find across-the-board energy. Some players had it for spurts, but getting the collective on the same page of intensity was not happening.
Shoulders slumped. Heads shook. Turnovers became a problem. Memphis gleefully cashed those in. At one point in the first half, the Nuggets had nearly as many turnovers (eight) as they had made field goals (nine).
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