Ball Arena in Denver is 5,280 feet above sea level. On Sunday against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Denver Nuggets wore all blue jerseys that read “MILE HIGH CITY.” In the crowd, fans hold signs warning the Wolves about low oxygen levels.
The Nuggets make the elevation a part of their brand because it’s real. Opposing teams often keep oxygen tanks handy. Players typically start games sluggish, gasping for their breath as they tango with three-time MVP Nikola Jokić.
That was certainly the case on Sunday for the Timberwolves. It was a prime-time matinee game, and Minnesota was still looking for its first win over the Nuggets this season. With a win, they would overtake Denver for the fourth seed in the West.
It was an opportunity for the Wolves to make a statement, which they did by winning 117-108. However, the statement didn’t start percolating until the bench group subbed in and pumped the Wolves with oxygen. That’s something that they would not have been capable of doing two months ago.
For the last few seasons, the Wolves have struggled when games tip off in the afternoon, during their usual pre-game nap times. And early on Sunday, they were asleep.
Players were tentative in their dribbling — not looking to attack Denver’s aggressive point-of-attack defense — passing around the perimeter with no body movement and settling for contested, deep three-point attempts.
On the other end, Jokić carved Minnesota’s defense up.
Denver held a 31-22 lead at the end of the first quarter. Jokić scored 13 points on 5 of 7 shooting and created nine points with his four assists. The Nuggets were blowing by Minnesota on the perimeter, and Jokić made them pay.
Chris Finch began the second quarter with Bones Hyland, Ayo Dosunmu, Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid, and Rudy Gobert. That group played four minutes together, beginning the quarter on a 9-0 run and outscoring Denver 14-7 in the frame.
Hyland is used to the elevation after beginning his NBA career in Denver and scored 10 points in the second quarter on 3-for-3 shooting. He and Dosunmu were pushing the pace and maximizing the minutes with Jokić on the bench.
“[Got] that first wind,” Donte DiVincenzo said on the bench during a timeout in the second quarter. “Now we’re good. Now step it up. Come on.”
The Timberwolves led 58-50 at halftime. They outscored Denver 36-19 in the second quarter on 61% shooting. Hyland was Minnesota’s leading scorer with 15 points on 5 of 5 shooting. The Wolves flipped a nightmarish start into a momentous halftime lead thanks to fast and aggressive play off the bench.
Last season, Minnesota’s bench typically lifted the team after flat starts. Finch relied on his bench, which fans affectionately referred to as the DNA (Donte, Naz, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker), to inject the starters with air many times. But this year, Minnesota’s bench flipped from its strength to a group that ranked 23rd in total points scored at the trade deadline.
That’s why they traded Rob Dillingham, Leonard Miller, and four second-round picks for Dosunmu, who averages 15 points per game on 44% three-point shooting this season. Finch’s lack of bench production is why he even gave Hyland a shot in the rotation in the first place, an opportunity that he has maximized.
“Bones came in and changed the tempo of the game,” Edwards said postgame.
Denver chipped a 14-point hole into eight at the end of the third. Jokić scored 17 points in the frame and corralled five offensive rebounds. He was already sitting at 32 points, threatening to have a sequel to the 56/16/15 game he had in an overtime win on Christmas Day against Minnesota.
However, the Timberwolves still felt the energy shift that Hyland and Dosunmu orchestrated in the first quarter, and that carried them for the entire game. There was a sense of urgency and commitment to playing fast. Minnesota finished the game with a 30-6 fastbreak points advantage, six of which came in the third quarter and 12 in the fourth.
“We got 50-50 balls after the first quarter,” Finch said after the game. “Knock off a little bit of the sluggishness. Got our second wind. I thought we were quicker to a lot of basketballs. And we were able to rebound, outlet pretty deep, and get out. Guys did a really good job playing clean and safe in transition.”
Minnesota’s bench gave the team a life-saving boost in a game where Reid wasn’t contributing offensively. That would not have happened before the trade deadline. He had 2 points on 1 of 5 field goals through three quarters. There was so much pressure on Reid to play like a Sixth Man of the Year every night before the deadline that when he didn’t, the Wolves were severely handicapped.
But with the integration of Dosunmu and the continued growth from Hyland, the Wolves are better prepared to handle an off night from Reid.
Denver hung around in the fourth, but Reid stepped up with a nine-point boomlet, complete with a contested 3-point make and two fancy layups that had him smiling ear to ear as the Wolves’ win became more imminent after each one.
The Timberwolves finished Sunday with 38 bench points. Hyland had 18 points on 6 of 7 shooting, Reid had 11 points on 5 of 11 from the floor, and Dosunmu had nine on 4 of 6. The Wolves also moved to 20-3 on the season when they get at least 36 points from their bench.
Minnesota beat Denver on Sunday without Peyton Watson (hamstring) and Aaron Gordon (hamstring). With the two of them healthy, next to an MVP-level Jokić and an All-Star-level Jamal Murray, the Nuggets are scary good.
Going into the Mile High City and beating them in a seven-game series will be almost as difficult as climbing into the thin air of Mount Everest. But the Timberwolves proved on Sunday that they have supplements packed into their backpacks to help them complete the high-altitude climb — a new-look bench group transformed from where it was early in the season.
