Nuggets notebook: Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr. continue progress with big nights against Atlanta; Bones Hyland's tricky situation

Feb. 4—Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. appear healthy and happy.

Murray served as a scorer and playmaker, finishing with 41 points, 7 assists and five rebounds in the Nuggets' 128-108 win over the Hawks on Saturday at Ball Arena.

"When Jamal is at his best, he's impacting the game across the board, at every level," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "He was our defensive player of the game tonight on a night he scored 41 points. ... He's aggressive. He's confident. When he has it going, guys are looking for him. That's what I probably love most about how well he's playing is that he's really aggressive right now. An aggressive Jamal, a confident Jamal is a scary Jamal, and I love it."

In classic Murray fashion, he wasn't completely satisfied.

"I thought I missed some easy shots. Could've had more," Murray said. "I think this is just another point proven, I guess."

Murray was awarded the team's defensive player of the game chain, but said he thought it morphed into an offensive award on Saturday.

Porter added 23 points on 16 shots, including a 3-of-8 mark from 3-point range, and added three steals and a block. The block came after a Nuggets turnover. Porter hustled back, and after the first shot was missed swatted a put-back attempt.

"That was a hell of a block," Malone said.

"Give Michael credit, man. It's not even just from when he's come back from the heel injury but even prior to that. I think his defense this year has been by far his best stretch of defense. ... To me, it just shows that he cares."

Murray said Porter's doing a better job of communicating and being in the right spot. That's allowed him to block shots and continue to rebound at a high level. There have still been situations when Porter has been pulled from the game during the final moments for an increased defensive presence.

"It bothers him, and it should," Malone said. "He doesn't want to be that guy. ... He's showing me and the coaching staff that, you know what, let him go out there and play. He's 6-10. He's got a 7-foot wingspan. Even when a couple of guys scored on him tonight, they were contested shots in the midrange. I said 'Michael, that's great defense.' Those are shots we'll live with."

Handling Hyland's sensitive situation

The Nuggets' coach is doing his best to navigate a tricky situation.

Bones Hyland, whose name continues to come up in trade rumors, did not play once again. After being added to the injury report with a non-COVID illness earlier in the day, the team stated that he was available to play in the hour leading up to tipoff.

"It's a real sensitive area for everyone involved. With the trade deadline coming up, him not playing the last couple of games, it's just trying to give him some space but also let him know that, yes, this is a business, but we also care about you," Malone said.

"I put myself in his situation, and it's not easy. He's a young kid. He's got a lot going on in his life, and I just want the best for Bones Hyland, I really do."

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Room for improvement

Things can always be better, and the Nuggets are no exception.

When asked what the team could still improve in the final 30 games of the regular season, Malone pointed at a couple of areas — turnovers and paint defense. Some of the turnovers are a byproduct of Denver's pass-happy offense, but Malone would like to decrease the costliest ones that allow the opponent to get out and run.

"Those turnovers can lead to a lot of easy opportunities on the other end," Malone said pregame. "I would love for us to be able to get that number down, especially the live-ball turnovers that lead to easy runouts."

Denver's 3-point defense has improved since the start of the season, and the next step is improving inside. If the Nuggets can decrease the number of points allowed inside, Malone believes that would help the team take another step toward being among the league's best.

"If you want to go from being a good defensive team to an elite defensive team, you take away both," Malone said.

"That allows you to be an elite team that can maybe make a really deep run. That would be me nitpicking and looking for perfection. I love where we're at. We're never satisfied, and we're trying to find ways to continue to improve."

NUGGETS 128, HAWKS 108

What happened: Jamal Murray scored 14 of his points in the first quarter and led the Nuggets to a five-point advantage to start the second. The Nuggets held the Hawks to 22 points in the second quarter and led 70-52 at halftime. Atlanta closed within 11 to start the fourth quarter. Atlanta cut the deficit to eight in the fourth before Murray and Nikola Jokic created enough separation for Denver's third straight win.

Murray finished with 41 points, while Jokic posted a 14-point, 18-rebound, 10-assist triple-double.

What went right: With the win, the Nuggets tied the Celtics for the best record in the NBA at 37-16. Denver also increased its lead atop the Western Conference to 4.5 games over the Grizzlies. Denver also limited the Hawks to 22 points in the second and fourth quarters.

What went wrong: Denver's defense got off to another slow start. The Hawks made 13 of their 20 shots in the first quarter and scored 30 points in the opening 12 minutes. Atlanta posted nine assists to one turnover in the quarter.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also sprained an ankle in the first half and did not return, putting his availability in question for Denver's next game.

Highlight of the night: Bruce Brown locked down so Christian Braun could take off. After Brown stripped Bogdan Bogdanovic late in the third quarter, Braun sprinted to start the fast break. Brown passed it ahead, and there was no one to prevent the Nuggets rookie from throwing down an emphatic two-handed dunk that put the Nuggets up 15 in the final three minutes of the third.

Up next: The Nuggets hopped on a plane and headed to Minnesota for Sunday's 5 p.m. tipoff against the Timberwolves.

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