Back-to-backs, the Nuggets bid you wary adieu, for now.
In their league-leading ninth back-to-back of the first 45% of the season, Denver fell short of a road-home sweep with a 122-120 loss to the Magic on Friday night at Ball Arena. Jamal Murray’s attempt at a game-tying jumper rimmed out as time expired, not quite recreating the magic Nikola Jokic conjured the previous night.
Denver’s plan for the last possession was to get the ball to Jokic in the pocket, coach Michael Malone said. But the Magic switched as Murray and Jokic tried to initiate their two-man game, and Murray was bumped backward, throwing off the play and forcing him to improvise.