Three Takeaways From the Nets' Sunday Win Over the Nuggets

The Brooklyn Nets (11-22) returned home looking to break a three-game losing skid against the injury-riddled Denver Nuggets (23-12).

The Nets got Michael Porter Jr. back after a two-game absence with an illness, while Nic Claxon remained out due to personal reasons. The Nuggets were down three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, former Net Cam Johnson, and Jonas Valanciunas, but they did get Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun back on minutes restrictions. Brooklyn took advantage of those injuries, picking up a 127-115 win to snap the losing streak.

Here are the three biggest takeaways from the Nets home victory over the Nuggets.

1. Day'Ron Sharpe Is The Real Deal

Day Day droppin' dimes 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Cx8DZTKonz
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) January 4, 2026

With Nic Claxton missing his second game in a row due to personal reasons, Day'Ron Sharpe got his second straight start. And he was fantastic once again. Sharpe filled up the stat sheet on Sunday, finishing the game with 17 points, six rebounds, three assists, and three steals. He was 6-9 from the field in 31 minutes.

In his fifth NBA season, Sharpe seems to be putting it all together. He's shooting a career-best from the field, averaging a career-high in assists per game, and his defense has been top-notch. The former first-round pick is playing some of the best basketball of his professional career right now, and has firmly established himself in Jordi Fernandez's circle of trust going forward.

2. Noah Clowney Bounces Back

b2b triples for @NoahClowney 🎯

he's up to 20 points pic.twitter.com/vTYem4cdVp
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) January 4, 2026

Noah Clowney had been in a big shooting slump entering Sunday's game. Over his past seven games leading into the matchup with Denver, Clowney had averaged 11.6 points per game on a dismal 31.2% from the field. He desperately needed a bounce-back game, and that's exactly what he got on Sunday.

Clowney poured in 22 points on an efficient 6-10 shooting from the field. With the Nuggets doing everything in their power to try and limit Michael Porter Jr., Brooklyn needed another scoring option to step up, and Clowney answered the call. This could be just the performance he needed to get his confidence back. The Nets will need this version of Clowney going forward.

3. Nets Depth Shines

being dope, having fun, chilling, hitting 3s, smiling pic.twitter.com/r6X1TxiGPT
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) January 4, 2026

On a day where the Nets were almost fully healthy, they showed just how good the depth can be when everyone's rolling. The usual suspects like Michael Porter Jr. and Cam Thomas put in quality scoring outputs, but it was the rest of roster that stepped up to support them. All in all, Brooklyn had six different players finish the game with at least 13 points.

Sharpe stepped up again in Claxton's absence. Clowney bounced back in a big way. Ziaire Williams contributed in a big way again with 13 off the bench. And Egor Demin added a quiet and efficient 13 points with the starting lineup. With Claxton set to return to the lineup on Wednesday, according to Jordi Fernandez, there's a good chance that Brooklyn's best basketball could still be ahead of them.