Murray's 42 Erases a 23-Point Hole — Jokic Hits 199 as Nuggets Escape
GOATIFYDenver needed an escape act to avoid an 0–2 start, and it took almost every minute available. Down by 23 against New Orleans, the Nuggets rallied to win 141–135 in overtime on October 24. Jamal Murray supplied 42 points, Nikola Jokic produced 35 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, and rookie Trevon Brazile delivered an unlikely closing contribution.
The score tells only part of the story. New Orleans led by 19 entering the fourth quarter and still had an eight-point cushion with 97 seconds left. Denver's comeback depended on a series of high-pressure possessions, a crucial three-shot foul and a bench player who refused to disappear when the game tightened.
A 23-point deficit exposed Denver's problems before the comeback
At one stage in the second quarter, New Orleans had pushed its advantage to 53–30. The Pelicans were not merely hanging around against a contender; they had built a lead large enough to force Denver to rethink the entire evening. They carried a 73–57 margin into halftime, with Zion Williamson punctuating the half with a dunk at the buzzer. For the Nuggets, the task was no longer to execute a normal home opener. It was to find enough stops and efficient possessions to make the final quarter relevant.
The Pelicans had several scorers sharing the burden. Trey Murphy III finished with 26 points, Dejounte Murray added 22, and Williamson and Derik Queen contributed 17 apiece. That distribution mattered because Denver could not solve the game by taking away one obvious option. Even when the Nuggets made their first recovery, New Orleans still had enough offense to restore separation. The visitors entered the fourth quarter up 19, a margin that ordinarily allows a team to control tempo and make the opponent chase.
Denver's opening loss to Oklahoma City had been a very different kind of warning. The Nuggets managed only 84 points in that game, with Jokic held to 13 on 5-for-19 shooting. Against New Orleans, the attack eventually generated 141, but the early defensive leakage created an equally serious problem. A high ceiling on offense is useful only if a team can keep a game within reach long enough to use it.
New Orleans was also operating without center Yves Missi, who had hurt his knee against Utah the previous night. That absence reduced its frontcourt options, but it does not erase the quality of its first three quarters. The more telling issue was that the Pelicans could not translate that control into a clean finish. A lead that looked comfortable for most of the night became fragile once Denver began stacking stops with quick scores.
The last 97 seconds turned an eight-point lead into overtime
The comeback's most dramatic phase began with New Orleans still leading 124–116 and just 1:37 remaining in regulation. An eight-point gap at that point leaves little margin for empty trips. Denver needed offense, but it also needed the Pelicans to stop turning possessions into points. Jokic and Murray hit three-pointers, and Aaron Gordon finished a dunk to bring the Nuggets within two. Each basket changed the arithmetic: what had looked like a game of damage limitation became a single-possession contest.
The pivotal whistle came with 16 seconds left. Murray was fouled attempting a three-pointer, sending him to the line with Denver trailing. He made two of three attempts, enough to tie the game at 126. Missing one did not cost the Nuggets because the sequence had already created the exact opportunity they required. That is the thin line between a remarkable comeback and an impressive rally that still ends in defeat.
The late sequence also shows why reducing the result to Murray's 42 points misses the point. His scoring was indispensable, but the comeback was built from connected actions: Jokic stretched the floor, Gordon supplied an inside finish, and Denver finally made the stops needed to give those shots value. No single highlight can explain an eight-point deficit vanishing in less than two minutes. It was the combination of execution and New Orleans losing control of the clock.
Denver had already cut into the lead earlier with its stars resting. Brazile's three-pointer made it 112–101 with 9:04 left, forcing a timeout. New Orleans answered and restored a 16-point cushion at 118–102, but a 9–0 Denver burst, capped by Brazile's putback dunk, reduced the gap again. Those possessions did not look like the final act when they happened. In retrospect, they were the bridge that kept the late-game comeback possible.
Jokic's 199th triple-double makes the comeback part of a larger chase
Jokic finished with 35 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists, reaching 199 regular-season triple-doubles. Russell Westbrook, recently retired, holds the record at 209. The gap is now ten, a figure small enough to become an obvious talking point every time Jokic assembles another double-digit line across three categories. The milestone adds historical weight to an October game, but the way Denver secured it says more about the center's current value than the round number alone.
His box score is a record of volume and versatility. The critical fourth-quarter three-pointer helped turn the final stretch into a contest, while two free throws in the opening minute of overtime gave Denver its first lead since the first quarter. He then hit a turnaround shot in the lane to make it 130–128. Those were not empty additions to an already decisive statistical night; they arrived when the outcome was still genuinely unsettled.
The contrast with Denver's 96–84 defeat in Oklahoma City two nights earlier is instructive. Jokic struggled to 13 points in that opener as the Thunder pressured Denver's half-court offense. Against New Orleans, the Nuggets found a route back through a combination of his scoring, his playmaking and Murray's shot creation. One bounce-back performance does not settle the question of how Denver will handle elite defensive pressure, but it does demonstrate why its offense can change character so quickly when Jokic is effective.
Chasing Westbrook's number should not become a distraction from what the triple-doubles represent. Denver does not need Jokic to collect an arbitrary line for its own sake; it needs him to control possessions, punish mismatches and make teammates more dangerous. The record will draw attention because it is tangible. The more consequential development on Saturday was his ability to move between roles as the game demanded, then deliver directly in overtime.
Brazile's seven overtime points were Denver's most useful surprise
Rookie Trevon Brazile scored 17 points, including seven in overtime, and supplied one of the extra period's defining baskets. After New Orleans briefly trimmed Denver's lead, Brazile hit a corner three-pointer that made it 133–129. The timing mattered as much as the shot itself. A comeback team can be vulnerable once it finally moves ahead: one missed open look or defensive lapse can surrender all the momentum it has just earned. Brazile's answer gave Denver a cushion when it needed one.
His earlier contributions were just as important. With Jokic and Murray resting in the fourth, Brazile hit a three that cut the deficit to 11. Later, he finished the putback dunk at the end of a 9–0 run. Those moments help explain why Denver could keep pressure on New Orleans without requiring its two stars to carry every possession. For a rookie, producing in several different game states is a more encouraging signal than scoring during a comfortable stretch.
The Nuggets had genuine rotation gaps to manage. Julian Strawther, Spencer Jones, Cameron Johnson and rookie Alpha Diallo were unavailable because of injuries. Christian Braun added 15 points, while DeMar DeRozan contributed 12. Denver therefore needed useful minutes from the players who were available, not simply another masterpiece from Jokic. Brazile provided a specific answer to that need, although one game is far too small a sample to assume the role will look identical every night.
For New Orleans, the result raises a different question. The Pelicans generated 135 points, led for much of the game and had six players reach double figures, yet could not close out a road win. Missing Missi complicated the rotation, but an eight-point advantage with 97 seconds remaining should still offer a realistic path to victory. Denver deserves credit for its execution; New Orleans must examine why the late defensive possessions and clock management unraveled together.
The teams are due to meet again in New Orleans later in the week. That quick rematch will provide a useful test of whether Saturday's ending was an exceptional sequence or evidence of repeatable strengths and weaknesses. Denver can celebrate a spectacular recovery without pretending that falling behind by 23 is a sustainable formula. New Orleans can recognize three quarters of strong work without treating the collapse as a harmless anomaly.
Denver left with its first win, a 42-point Murray performance, another Jokic milestone and a breakout contribution from Brazile. The headline is a 23-point comeback, but the lesson is less romantic: the Nuggets survived because their best players executed under pressure and their depleted supporting cast supplied timely possessions.
New Orleans will remember the same night for the lead it could not protect. If the teams' next meeting is even half as tense, both sides will have plenty to revisit.
