Sixth man Al Harrington led the way with 29 points – including 5 big threes – as the Denver Nuggets edged the Wizards in Washington 108-104 on Friday night. Starters Danilo Gallinari and Ty Lawson pitched in with 21 apiece, and Denver stayed perfect through three games of a five-game road swing.
All five Nuggets starters finished with a positive plus-minus, led by Lawson with a +15. Ty also paced Denver with 6 assists, and – shockingly – was their top rebounder with an amazing 9 boards. Not bad for the shortest guy on the floor. Lawson made up for the absence of starting power forward Nene, who sat out with a minor heel injury.
The Nuggets allowed six Wizards to score 10+ points, but only shooting guard Nick Young topped 20. Denver’s defensive intensity has been questionable at times this season, but the young Wizards simply kept up with the Nuggets on Friday. Washington partially recovered from a 1-12 start on Tuesday by beating the league-best OKC Thunder earlier this week, and the Wizards look like they will be running hot late in the season.
Next up is Denver’s first trip to New York’s Madison Square Gardens since the big trade that sent Carmelo Anthony to the Knicks in return for a small army of prospects. Gallinari came over from NYC and has replaced Melo in the Nuggets starting five. His versatility earned him a block, a steal, 4 rebounds and an impressive 5 assists in DC on Friday.
In fact, Denver moves more fluidly both offensively and defensively as a result of Danilo’s selfless, team-oriented play. The Nuggets (11-5) now sit at second place in the Western Conference while the Knicks are floundering out east with a disappointing 6-9 record.
Look for Denver to showcase Gallo along with twin towers Kosta Koufos and Timofey Mozgov – young centers also included in the Melo package – when they hit the hardcourt in Manhattan on Saturday night at 7:30pm ET.
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