Two Positive Takeaways & One Negative From Nuggets' Win vs. Warriors

The Denver Nuggets have found their rhythm recently, beating the Golden State Warriors 116-93 on Sunday for their sixth straight win. Denver is still sitting tight in fourth place in the West with a 48-28 record, but this recent hot streak is exactly what they needed with the playoffs quickly approaching.

Now, with just six games left in the regular season, we can take a look at two positive takeaways from Denver's win over the Warriors, and one negative.

Positive: Efficiency

Mar 29, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown (11) reacts after a play in the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors at Ball Arena. | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Nuggets undoubtedly have one of the top offenses in the NBA, and when they are hitting their shots, they are virtually unstoppable. While their scoring was down in Sunday's win, dropping just 116 points after averaging 130 over their last five games, their efficiency was a huge plus.

The Nuggets finished the game shooting 43-86 (50%) from the field, 19-40 (47%) from three-point range, and 11-12 (92%) from the free-throw line. Their offense excels when they are finding open shooters, which they manage to do relatively easily with high-level playmakers on the floor, so it makes everything click when they knock down those good looks.

Peyton Watson was the only Nuggets player on Sunday to play 20+ minutes and shoot under 50% from the field. This was a great offensive showing by the Nuggets, and while the final score might not reflect it as much as some of their recent games, they will not lose very often with this level of efficiency.

Positive: Second-half dominance

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. | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

After trailing 53-46 at halftime, things were not looking good for Denver. However, whatever they said in the locker room during the break obviously worked. The Nuggets flipped a switch in the second half, outscoring the Warriors 40-21 in the third quarter and 30-19 in the fourth to ultimately pull out a dominant 23-point win.

This turn of events was largely led by Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Tim Hardaway Jr., and if they can take over more games like this down the stretch, Denver will be put in very good positions to win.

There is still the pressing issue that the Nuggets are struggling to play four complete quarters of dominant basketball, as we still saw on Sunday, but it was great for them to figure things out in the final 24 minutes.

Negative: Injuries

Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson and forward Aaron Gordon — Mar 22, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson (23) and forward Aaron Gordon (32) react the third quarter against the Portland Trail Blazers at Ball Arena. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

After Aaron Gordon was a late scratch for Sunday's game, the Nuggets would have to turn to forwards like Cam Johnson and Spencer Jones to step up as their next-in-line power forwards. Unfortunately, they both left the game early due to injuries.

With Johnson and Jones then sidelined, the Nuggets looked at Zeke Nnaji to get some run. What happened next? Nnaji left with an injury. By the end of Sunday's game, the Nuggets were without Gordon, Johnson, Jones, and Nnaji, despite having a blank injury report just hours before tip-off.

The Nuggets have been dealt an unfavorable hand with injuries this season, and just as things were trending in the right direction, they suffered some key absences. Despite this, they were able to pull out a win, but this was not a good sign for this team in desperate need of improved injury luck.

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