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Nikola Jokic almost perfect in Nuggets’ romp over Grizzlies

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Nikola Jokic almost perfect in Nuggets’ romp over Grizzlies


Perfect games occur only on the baseball diamond, but the Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic came mighty close on a basketball court Thursday night.

The beefy center with the soft touch and magical court vision was a perfect 11 for 11 from the field and 3 for 3 from the foul line en route to 26 points as the Nuggets destroyed Memphis, 142-105, at Ball Arena.

Jokick left the game late in the third quarter — with the crowd chanting “MVP” — shortly after he dished off a fastbreak assist to Christian Braun to secure a triple-double. Jokic had 10 assists and 14 rebounds. The only blemishes in his 30 minutes on the floor were three turnovers.

The win extended a season-best six-game win streak for the Nuggets (23-10), whose 142 points were a season-high.

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Denver’s lead blew up to 32 points in the third quarter with Jamal Murray and Jokic putting on a clinic of fundamental, two-man basketball. Murray scored 23 on 9-of-12 shooting, including 4 for 6 on 3-pointers. He added nine assists.

“Jamal and Nikola were a combined 20 for 23 tonight, which is incredible,” coach Michael Malone said. “I don’t know how many MVPs you could say this about, but Nikola doesn’t care about, ‘How many shots he’s getting.’

“He was 11 for 11 tonight. He doesn’t care about that.  If Jamal has got it going, he’s clapping for Jamal. He takes more joy in his teammates’ success (than his own) and that’s the true definition of being selfless. And he lives it every day.”

The Grizzlies came to town riding a four-game winning streak, sparked by the return of star point guard Ja Morant, who came back after serving his 25-game suspension. But Morant was scratched because of illness. His presence wouldn’t have made much difference Thursday night.

“I was proud of our guys, (because) once we learned about Ja not playing, just before tipoff, our guys handled their business,” Malone said. “There was no letdown.”

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Denver shot 57.3% from the floor vs. 42.5% for Memphis. The Nuggets had a season-high 43 assists and committed just 12 turnovers.

“That’s incredible,” Malone said.

Jokic led Denver to a 65-48 halftime lead when it was clear that the Grizzlies were going to get blown out. He scored 15 points on 7-for-7 shooting, including knocking down a buzzer-beater 3-pointer to end the first quarter.

The only other game in which Jokic shot 100% from the field in a game when he shot at least 10 times was on Oct. 20, 2018, vs. the Suns. He scored 35 points on 11-of-11 shooting (including three 3-pointers) and finished with 11 rebounds and 11 assists.

Thursday marked the third time in Jokic’s career that he posted a triple-double when he didn’t miss a shot from the field. He and Wilt Chamberlain are the only players in NBA history to have multiple triple-doubles on 100% field goal shooting.

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Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets saves a loose ball before passing to Peyton Watson (8) during the first quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at Ball Arena in Denver on Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

Peyton Watson got the start at forward for Denver, replacing Aaron Gordon, who suffered lacerations to his face and hand from a dog bite on Christmas. The injuries to Gordon’s shooting hand and face required 21 stitches.

Watson, who’s still evolving as an offensive player, was given scant respect by the Grizzlies, who left him wide open on the perimeter. He finished with 20 points on 6-of-14 shooting. He drained four of his 10 3-point shots.

“I loved it,” Watson said of the Grizzlies daring him to shoot. “It made my job easy. I knew I was going to be open and I knew they were sagging off me, so I took it as disrespect and I shot every one, confidently.”

Added Jokic: “They didn’t respect him much, but that’s fine. We know what he’s capable of doing. We kept feeding him the ball.”

Malone said he made a late decision to start Watson in place of Gordon. He was thrilled with how the 21-year-old responded.

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“They didn’t guard him early but he stayed with it and he didn’t lose confidence,” Malone said. “That can mess with you, but I thought Peyton did a really good job. I think he knows we have faith and confidence in him, and let’s be honest, Peyton Watson knows he’s a huge part of our future.”

The Nuggets, winners of nine of their last 10 games, host Oklahoma City on Friday night.

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Denver, CO

Denver bookstore Tattered Cover accepts $1.83 million sales bid from Barnes & Noble

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Denver bookstore Tattered Cover accepts $1.83 million sales bid from Barnes & Noble


The Tattered Cover, a beloved Denver institution and nationally known independent bookstore, has accepted a sales offer from Barnes & Noble, a model for the fictionalized corporate bookstore chain that ran a small independent bookseller out of business in the movie “You’ve Got Mail.”

The 53-year-old Denver business, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late 2023, agreed Monday to accept Barnes & Noble’s offer of up to $1.83 million in cash. The agreement is for Tattered Cover’s four stores and is supported by the bookstore’s parent company, Bended Page.

Under the agreement, the name of the Tattered Cover Book Store and the store’s program of events would continue, according to a motion filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Colorado. The buyer, TC Acquisition Co. LLC, an affiliate of Barnes & Noble Inc., anticipates offering jobs to “substantially all” of Tattered Cover’s roughly 70 employees.

The purchase will cover the $1.6 million in secured claims that Tattered Cover owes. Barnes & Noble will pay $50,000 for back rent and plans to extend the leases on the store’s sites.

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The lease on the store’s main location at East Colfax Avenue in Denver will be extended through 2038 and the lease on the store in the Aspen Grove shopping center in Littleton would run through 2030, said Steven Silvers, a spokesman for Bended Page.

Read the full story from our partners at The Denver Post.


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Denver, CO

Plane crashes in Steamboat Springs, smoke rises from mobile home park

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Plane crashes in Steamboat Springs, smoke rises from mobile home park


DENVER (KDVR) — A plane crashed Monday in a Steamboat Springs mobile home park, according to reports from the scene.

The Routt County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the crash when FOX31 reached out around 4:45 p.m.

A photo from Steamboat Radio’s Shannon Lukens showed smoke rising from the crash site in the area of West Acres, a Steamboat Springs mobile home park. Lukens said two trailers caught fire.

Lukens spoke with a West Acres resident who was there when the crash happened.

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“I just heard a jet pass by and I just hear a boom, everything around us just shakes,” Beyonce Alegria told Lukens. “There’s screaming, there’s people screaming there’s kids in there. And the houses just go up in flames. You can just feel everything going hot. Ashes are everywhere. It was one of the scariest experiences.”

FOX31 has a crew headed to the scene and is working to develop more information about what happened. Check back here and on FOX31 News at 5 p.m. for updates.



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Denver, CO

Oregon Football’s Bo Nix Impresses Denver Wide Receiver

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Oregon Football’s Bo Nix Impresses Denver Wide Receiver


More praise for former Oregon quarterback Bo Nix, this time from Denver Bronco Pro Bowl receiver Courtland Sutton.

Sutton is the latest to chime in on the ability of Nix to lead this team into a new era. Simply put, Sutton forecasts early success for Nix.

“If it becomes a three or four-year dynasty, then I hope I will be able to be a part of it.”

– Courtland Sutton, Broncos Receiver

The Broncos drafted Nix with the 12th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft with high expectations for the record setting former Duck.

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Sutton acknowledges there is a three-way battle for the starting QB position in Denver. In addition to Nix, rookie Jarrett Stidham and veteran Zach Wilson are all in the mix. However, he does not see this as being a long, multi-year process of hits and misses while battling division rivals Kansas City and the Los Angeles Chargers who tout another former Duck quarterback Justin Herbert and a new coach in Jim Harbaugh.

“We want to win right now,” said Sutton during a recent interview. “I think with Bo being a young guy and a guy they took really high, I understand the politics of the game and everyone is rooting for him to be the guy. I think he does a lot of things really well and I think he has the ability to go out and have success early. I don’t see this being a three or four-year process. If it becomes a three or four-year dynasty, then I hope I will be able to be a part of it.”

Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton runs with the ball against the Detroit Lions.

Dec 16, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) runs with the ball against the Detroit Lions in the third quarter at Ford Field. / Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports

Sutton’s role going forward is not as clear as he would like. Following an outstanding 2023 season in which he caught 59 passes for 772 yards and 10 touchdowns, Sutton has asked Denver for either more money overall and/or more guaranteed money. So far, there has been no movement on either side.

Logically, it makes sense for the Broncos to find a way to keep Sutton onboard. This is the time for quarterbacks and wide receivers to get to know each other. More specifically, Nix would benefit from having a proven receiver to rely on early in his career. Sutton has been that guy for the “musical chairs game” of signal-callers over the past five seasons and there is no reason to think he can’t be the same for Nix.

“I hope that I am a part of the bigger picture,” said Sutton. “I’ve been told that is what the gameplan is. I’ve also been told some other things. We will see what happens. I hope I am able to be a part of the gameplan.”

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While there appears to be a great deal of pressure on Nix’s shoulders, Oregon Ducks’ fans have seen proof of his ability to take on that sort of pressure and excel. The Broncos believe this former Oregon star is NFL-ready. We will see in a few short months.

Stay up to date on all things Oregon Ducks by visiting Oregon Ducks on SI daily and following Oregon Ducks on SI on Facebook and X.



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