The Denver Nuggets are in a lot of trouble right now.
They are currently down 0-2 to the Phoenix Suns in their second-round series.
There’s nothing wrong losing two games on the road in a playoff series, but it’s the way the first two games have gone.
The Suns have destroyed the Nuggets in the first two games.
Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton have had their way.
Even role players, like Jae Crowder, are having tremendous success.
It has been a rough start for the Nuggets, and it possibly can get worse.
They are on the cusp of being swept, which is not what they envisioned.
How can they regroup and avoid the sweep?
Here are two of the keys that the Nuggets must focus on in order to get back in the series.
2. Keep Shooting
The Nuggets have been a solid three-point shooting team all season long.
They were ranked 15th in three-pointers made and eighth in three-point percentage.
However, they have become ice cold thus far against the Suns.
Game 1 seemed like an outlier as the team shot 14-40 from three.
Specifically, Michael Porter Jr. went 3-8.
It was a bad showing all around, but Game 2 couldn’t have gone worse.
Unfortunately, it did.
The Nuggets shot 4-22 (18.2%) on 3-pt FG attempts in the 1st half of Game 2 vs the Suns tonight.
That's tied for their 2nd-worst 3-pt shooting half over the last 25 seasons, regular season or playoffs (min. 20 attempts). pic.twitter.com/lyzKlkzTXV
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 10, 2021
In Game 2, the Nuggets shot 14-43 from three.
In two games so far, the Nuggets have gone 28-83 from three.
This is not good for a team that is depleted.
Their first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers was the complete opposite.
The offense seemed to be humming throughout the series.
However, in this series, the offense seems to be stagnant.
This ice cold streak should not continue this way as they are heading home.
The Nuggets should keep on shooting and see if they can get hot.
As of now, the same shots that have been going in all season are just not falling.
Yes, it might be time to switch some things up, but their shooting is going to help them avoid the sweep.
1. Compete And Do Not Quit
The Nuggets tend to go through slumps in certain games within the playoffs where they look mentally weak.
There have been moments over the last couple of playoffs where they get outplayed and crumble.
The first two games against the Suns has been another example of that.
Game 1 had the Nuggets up by one heading into halftime.
The Suns went on a run in the third quarter and the Nuggets faltered quickly.
They ended up losing the second half, 65-47.
The going got tough and they got killed once it did.
Game 2 had the Suns leading at the half, but the Nuggets were still in the game.
However, the Suns pulled away in each quarter in the second half, and won by 25.
The Nuggets are not playing at the intense level of the Suns.
Being outplayed by this much is a red flag.
The Suns have outscored the Nuggets by 21.0 PPG so far in this series.
Teams to go up 2-0 in a best-of-7 while outscoring their opponents by 20 PPG have a 33-3 series record all-time.
However, 1 of the 3 series losses belongs to the Suns (1995 Conf. Semis vs HOU). pic.twitter.com/XgtF7SBCIm
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 10, 2021
They are folding under the pressure in these two games.
Game 3 will be very pivotal and we will see how much the Nuggets want to compete when trailing in the series.
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