Three Takeaways From Nuggets' Huge Road Win vs. Spurs

After beating the Houston Rockets by 36 points on the road on Wednesday, the Denver Nuggets went into a tough challenge against the San Antonio Spurs on the second night of a back-to-back on Thursday. Despite a recent trend of struggling against the league's top teams, the Nuggets picked up a huge road win over the Spurs.

The Nuggets are leaving San Antonio with an impressive 136-131 win, tying the season series 1-1 with two games left to play. Here are a few key takeaways from Denver's big win on Thursday night:

Dominating the clutch

An unfortunate trend for the Nuggets has been their struggles in late-game situations, but Thursday was much different. After trailing 119-114 with just six minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Nuggets went on a 14-0 run to take the lead and ultimately seal the win.

The Nuggets seemed to be in trouble for most of the game, but a dominant 42-25 fourth quarter shifted things in their favor.

Two of the Nuggets' most glaring issues recently have been their inability to beat playoff-caliber teams and their struggles in the clutch, but they put both of those concerns to rest on Thursday. Not to mention, they did so on the second night of a back-to-back, securing two statement wins over top-four teams in the West within 24 hours.

Jokic makes the most of Wemby's absence

With star center and elite defender Victor Wembanyama sidelined for the Spurs, Nuggets' three-time MVP Nikola Jokic had a very favorable matchup in San Antonio.

Despite going scoreless in the fourth quarter, Jokic finished his night with 31 points, 20 rebounds, 12 assists, three steals, and two blocks, while shooting 9-17 from the field and 11-11 from the free-throw line.

Most 30/20/10 games in last 50 years:

Nikola Jokic - 10
Rest of NBA combined - 6 pic.twitter.com/rSCWWRz0cI
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) March 13, 2026

Jokic seems to always be able to make the most of a favorable matchup, and what he did in San Antonio was a prime example. Jokic controlled the game, putting together yet another statistically wild performance. This was his tenth career game with 30+ points, 20+ rebounds, and 10+ assists, while every other NBA player has just six combined in the last 50 years.

Jamal Murray shines when it matters

Murray has been playing through a sprained ankle for the last few games, but it certainly did not impact him on Thursday night. Murray finished with 39 points and seven assists on 11-21 shooting from the field and 15-15 from the charity stripe.

Of course, this is nothing new for Murray, but what he was able to do in the fourth quarter was special. The first-time All-Star dominated in the final period, taking over with 16 points in just nine minutes, shooting 5-7 from the field and 2-4 from beyond the arc.

Jamal Murray has the 4th most points in the entire NBA since the All-Star break. pic.twitter.com/Vjvd7oL3lq
— Real App (@realapp) March 13, 2026

This display from the Nuggets' star duo is exactly why many still believe they will be able to contend for a title, especially as they seem to be fixing some of their weaknesses in the final stretch of the regular season.

After a defensive masterclass on Wednesday and an incredible clutch performance on Thursday, there is reason to hold out hope for this Nuggets team with just 15 games until the playoffs.