Blazers Overcome Lackluster First Half, Topple Nuggets

The Portland Trail Blazers brushed off a poor shooting performance in the first quarter, erasing a 14-point second-half deficit.

Nov 2, 2026: Portland Trail Blazers forward Toumani Camara reacts after a play in the fourth quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Portland Trail Blazers outscored the Denver Nuggets by 16 points in the second half to claw from behind and win 118-110. Portland snapped an 18-game regular season losing streak against the Nuggets in Denver.

Deni Avdija led Portland with 28 points, three rebounds and five assists, shooting 10-for-22 from the field and 6-for-9 from the free throw line. Damian Lillard struggled from 3-point range, but went 5-for-11 from the field and made 9 of his 10 free throws to finish with 20 points, adding six rebounds and six assists. Toumani Camara continued his hot-streak from three, sinking 3 of 7.

Holiday produced a massive performance off the bench, flirting with triple-double, finishing with 17 points, eight rebounds and 10 assists, going 7-for-11 overall and 3-for-4 from the arc. Donovan Clingan recorded his first double-double of the season, posting 17 points and 18 rebounds.

"I think we just caught a rhythm," Jrue Holiday told Blazers courtside reporter Brooke Olzendam postgame. "It's no excuse but the altitude here is real, so I think coming out we just didn't really have legs. Came out a little slow, but got back to form."

Jamal Murray led Denver with a game-high 35 points, shooting 10 of 19 and 4-for-9 from three, sinking all 11 of his free throws. Nikola Jokic added 26 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, finishing 10 of 22 from the field.

The Blazers trailed most of the night. Avdija knocked down a 3-pointer in the third quarter to tie the game for the first time since the opening tip. Portland took its first lead less than a minute later via a Holiday score in the paint with around three and a half minutes remaining in the period.

Shooting 34.8 percent from the field and 2-for-10 from 3-point range in the first quarter, Portland recovered nicely in the second quarter. The Blazers nailed 12 of their 23 total shots (52.2 percent), 6-of-13 shots (46.2 percent) from beyond the arc and went 9-for-10 at the free throw line in the second period.

The Nuggets free throw advantage dwindled in the second half. After shooting 21-for-26 at the charity stripe through two quarters, Denver only shot (and made) eight free throws in the second half.

The Blazers finished the game at 46.7 percent overall, 36.6 percent from three (15 of 41) and 81 percent from the free throw line (17 of 21). Denver, meanwhile, shot 46.8 percent, 34.6 percent from three (9 of 26) and 85.3 percent from the free throw line (29 of 34).

Portland moves to 5-1 on the season. The next stop on its road trip is a battle against the Phoenix Suns. The Nuggets fall to 3-3.

The good

Nov 2, 2026: Portland Trail Blazers guard Sidy Cissoko reacts after a play as guard Damian Lillard and guard Tyus Jones look on in the second quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After a dropping a highly-anticipated home bout against the Memphis Grizzlies by 22 points, Portland's bounced back well, winning the first two of its four-game road trip. Portland could've folded easily, playing its second game in three days and third game in five days. But they didn't, despite the lousy first quarter. That has to count for something.

And though Denver — at this point in the season — isn't one of the better teams in the league, escaping with a victory over arguably the best player in the world in Jokic is a feat worth patting the Blazers' shoulder for.

And they held Jokic to a relatively quiet night by his standards. Clingan's minutes mirrored Jokic's, guarding the three-time NBA MVP most of the night, while Holiday drew the assignment in the few moments Clingan sat when Jokic didn't. Clingan's struggled with foul trouble in a couple games this season, so his ability to play Clingan clean and keep him from establishing a rhythm with easy trips to the line (Jokic shot only four free throws all night) was massive.

As for Holiday, the 17-year NBA veteran deserves a round of applause. He finished with a plus-minus +13, the second highest on the team behind Chris Youngblood (+22), and infused Portland's offense with needed shot-making, especially as Scoot Henderson underwhelmed in his second consecutive start in Ja Morant's absence.

Whether it was running the pick-and-roll to perfection with Clingan, taking Murray off the dribble to the rack, hitting a demoralizing 3-pointer, or pursuing the ball like a madman to prevent a second-chance opportunity in clutch time, Holiday's fingerprints were all over the game.

The bad

Nov 2, 2026: Portland Trail Blazers guard Scoot Henderson attempts a shot in the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Henderson's been pretty bad this season. His lone decent (shooting) game came against the Suns in the Blazers' season opener, and he's been pretty abysmal ever since. Sure, you can point toward his defense, or the list of "little things" he manages to do, but that's not the production a team expects from its starting point guard.

Speaking of Henderson, Micah Nori said postgame against the Utah Jazz that he knows, "how hard he is on himself." That's a bit disheartening to hear, honestly. Not in the negative sense, but rather that it's hard not to feel for Henderson. He's aware of how bad he's playing, and it's starting to show on the floor.

It wasn't as bad as it was against the Jazz — or the Los Angeles Lakers when it was most obvious — but Henderson had moments in Denver where he seemed unsure of himself or flatly timid. And when he did act, he did so poorly the majority of the time. One has to wonder how many more underwhelming outings are needed before Nori goes with Holiday in the starting lineup.