The injury-ravaged Denver Nuggets got reinforcements Sunday as starters Christian Braun and Aaron Gordon both returned from lengthy injury absences, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the hot-shooting Nets.
Braun, who had missed 23 games with an ankle injury, and Gordon, who had missed 19 straight because of a hamstring strain, played 24 and 21 minutes, respectively, in the 127-115 loss. They were both on a minutes limit.
Denver is trying to balance getting itself healthy and staying afloat while enduring a stretch without not only Nikola Jokic, but also his backup, Jonas Valanciunas, as well as starting forward Cameron Johnson.
As a result, coach David Adelman said that he will consult with the training staff over whether he will play star guard Jamal Murray Monday night in Philadelphia on the second night of a back-to-back after playing Murray 40 minutes Sunday.
Murray, who had 27 points and 16 assists against Brooklyn, simply said he’s “trying to win games” when asked if he expected to play in Philadelphia.
It’s also unlikely either Braun or Gordon would play both halves of a back-to-back immediately upon returning from more than a month on the sidelines, though both of them said they felt OK — albeit out of rhythm — in their returns.
Despite the loss, Braun and Gordon back on the court was a welcome sight for a Nuggets team that kept losing key players in recent weeks and played the last two games without four starters. Jokic, Valanciunas and Johnson are all expected to miss multiple weeks.
The Nets’ victory was a measure of revenge for former longtime Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., who Denver traded to Brooklyn before the season for Johnson. Porter, who has enjoyed a breakout season with the Nets, scored 27 points to go along with 11 rebounds and five assists.
The Nuggets dropped to 1-2 in games since Jokic went down with his knee injury.
ESPN’s Tim Bontemps contributed to this report.