Jamal Murray Still Not Satisfied Despite Nuggets 5-Game Win Streak

The Denver Nuggets managed to extend their lengthy recent win streak to five straight games with a necessary victory over the Utah Jazz on Friday, 129-135, now rolling into their final seven games of the regular season with some serious momentum.

Especially on the offensive end, the Nuggets have been taking care of business. Each of their last five wins has come with a point total of at least 120 from Denver, and against the Jazz in particular, it resulted in a 33-point performance from Nikola Jokic, and a 31-point performance from potential All-NBA candidate Jamal Murray.

But it’s on the other end of the floor where the Nuggets still see improvements to be had from where they want to be. For Jamal Murray in particular, he spoke after the game about his desire to get Denver's defense as a whole up to par in the weeks ahead.

"Offensively, great. Offensively, no complaints, honestly," Murray said of the Nuggets' performance vs. Utah. "Defensively, we have some work to do. When teams are just coming at us like that, we have to flip that switch quicker and stop the bleeding somehow."

"I feel like we’re just hoping that we’re going to somehow and probably, eventually go on a run. We have to be able to get a kill and get three stops in a row at some point when we want to and when we need to. We weren't able to do that until the last few possessions of the game. We’ll be better, but I’m just glad our offense is as good as it is."

Nuggets' Defense Has "Work to Do"

Mar 27, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) after making a three-pointer during the first half against the Utah Jazz at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

It's been on the defensive side of the ball where the Nuggets have had room to grow all season long. Right now, Denver is ranked within the bottom 10 of the NBA in terms of defensive rating (116.2), a place they've been all season long, despite having an offensive consistently ranked near the top of the league.

For a good chunk of the year, part of those worries for the Nuggets defense leaned upon the rotation not being at full health, especially as it concerned their depth on the wing.

Peyton Watson, Christian Braun, and Aaron Gordon all missed significant time to deplete the Nuggets' usual firepower in terms of defensive versatility, and their numbers suffered as a result.

Now, though, the Nuggets are finally back to 100% health, and even when everyone's on the floor, there are still pockets where the rotation still has lapses on the defensive side. This one against Utah, where Denver let up nearly 130 points without nearly the entire Jazz rotation playing, is an example of just that.

The good thing for the Nuggets is that they'll have a few more regular season games at their disposal before the postseason gets rolling, providing a couple more weeks to work out those defensive kinks ahead of the real action.

However, if Denver can't put the pieces together to become a consistent on both ends before the postseason, and they're forced to play one-dimensionally against the best squads in the West, the wrong matchup could spell trouble for their title hopes.

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