Fortune Favors Nikola Jokic as Stephen Curry Fumbles in Crunch Time – 3 Takeaways From Controversial Warriors-Nuggets Encounter

The Warriors‘ hard-fought battle against the Nuggets ended in a win for the latter. Of course, by now everybody is raising hell for the unfair goaltending call (or the lack of it). Yet it would seem like the Denver Nuggets have a fairy godmother on their side. Not only were Stephen Curry and the Warriors unable to break their losing streak to Jokic and his team, but every move they made came with a boomerang effect on themselves.

Makes you wonder, doesn’t it? Either way, Denver is on a sweet path to victory while Golden State is trying to keep its cool under trying circumstances. The Warriors have won six games out of the nine played. It seems like three is not their lucky number. They did lose to the Nuggets by just three points towards the end. Anyway, why don’t we take a look at the three key takeaways from this game?

1. Stephen Curry shockingly falters in the clutch

In the annual survey, 55% of the NBA GMs had chosen Stephen Curry as the player with whom they would want to take the last shot. Interestingly, LeBron James was not even on the list. That’s an immense responsibility on the 4x NBA champion’s shoulder. But looking at his NBA history, Curry’s first legitimate buzzer-beater happened in 2022 against the Rockets. That crunch-time shot stretched into the Dubs’ fourth NBA title.

Since then, Steph has been able to keep his clutch shots at a steady graph. But the clutch reputation he built throughout this season did not save him against the Denver Nuggets. Lagging by five points with 14 seconds left, Curry managed to score a 3-pointer. The Dubs saw that as a renewed opportunity and fouled Jokic. It could have been a great option for them to take the lead, but Curry failed to convert a left-handed layup and the Warriors fell to Denver.

2. Referees had their way

It would seem like the NBA referees taking their own sweet time to make calls that ruin the Warriors’ victory goals won’t be the first time. 2010 also saw the referees create problems for the Warriors team. A fun fact is that the 2010 game was also a Warriors vs Nuggets matchup. And here we are again, 13 years later, with incompetent officiating. This time, though, the charges are a bit too serious to be ignored.

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Even though Kerr and Curry were livid at the unfairness of it all, post-game media appearances saw both the coach and the player calm. Going back to the exact incident, the first and the most ridiculous one would be the goaltend call late in the game. When Curry’s shot was barred by Gordon’s goaltending, it was unsurprisingly not called. That shot cost him two precious points.

Just moments after, the Warriors were called out for the exact same reason against the Nuggets. Another instance was when the referee called a take foul.

As you can see, Stephen Curry had enough of the referee’s antics that he walked down to the free throw line with a deadly look. Yup, he looked eerily calm.

3. Warriors rookies are the real deal

The one positive side in the Warriors vs Nuggets game was their bench unit. They practically shined like a beacon of hope amidst all the rubble. No surprise there. It is for situations like this that the Dubs got “Point God” Chris Paul on their team and put him in charge of the rookies. Trayce Jackson-Davis and Chris Paul joined the players on the court initially, with Brandin Podziemski joining them shortly.

Seeing as the Warriors were missing their center in Green, Davis’ presence on the court was crucial for the team. The bench unit outscored the Nuggets by 30 points, an impressive score given the situation. Another significant player was Moses Moody. His skills have often been showcased on the court and along with Jonathan Kuminga, he has received praises from Curry and Thompson for their contributions.

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Moody’s 2nd three-pointer had brought the game to a tie in the third quarter, where the Dubs soon got the lead over the Nuggets going into 4th quarter at 31-23. Of course, his help was needed on the defensive end, too. So even though Moody played just 14 minutes on the court, he scored 10 points, three rebounds, and an assist.

Well, it is still early in the season to give up all hope. The Warriors did win six of the nine games they played. And today’s matchup had more or less to do with luck, failed calls, and a low-key performance from key players. Until they meet again on December 26, the Warriors and their fans will have to bide their time.