Nuggets' Ball Arena woes persist as Trail Blazers rally from 14 down for win

Bennett Durando, The Denver Post on Nov 3, 2026

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DENVER — Home-court disadvantage remains a trend in the early stages of the Nuggets’ season.

They led for three quarters Monday, but the visiting Trail Blazers slowly whittled down a 14-point deficit until it was a late 9-point lead — and a 118-110 Nuggets loss. Denver (3-3) fell to 1-2 at home, its only win coming in overtime after a 23-point comeback against New Orleans.

The Blazers (5-1) took their first lead with 9:29 to go on a Chris Youngblood tip-in. Jamal Murray, trying to will his team to another win, clanked a jumper at the other end. Jrue Holiday buried a 3-pointer. The Nuggets suddenly found themselves playing from behind. They couldn’t get all the way back. Toumani Camara knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:10 to play, doubling Portland’s lead and landing a final blow.

Denver’s Cam Johnson was grabbing at his hamstring on the play.

Murray led the Nuggets with 35 points, five rebounds and six assists. Nikola Jokic continued to struggle with efficiency, finishing 10 for 22 for 26 points. Denver lost his minutes by three. Deni Avdija led the Blazers with 28.

Portland out-attempted its hosts from 3-point range, 41-26, a stylistic discrepancy that caught up with the Nuggets throughout the night.

They started the game in a three-two zone defense for a handful of possessions before morphing into man-to-man. The curveball was effective enough at throwing the Blazers off, though it also helped that they started in a major shooting drought. Jokic gobbled up rebounds early. An 11-3 advantage on the glass translated to a 15-8 lead. Denver’s starting lineup remained solid in its third game together this season, despite another quiet individual night for Aaron Gordon.

Rebounding had been a consistent issue in the Nuggets’ first five games, and it slowly caught up with them as much as the 3-point shooting margin on Monday. Portland won the rebound battle by 16, led by a relentless Donovan Clingan. Half of his 18 boards were at the offensive end.

Nuggets rookie Alpha Diallo returned to the rotation after missing four games with a wrist injury. Even with Spencer Jones still out, David Adelman felt more inclined to try an all-bench second unit, as he had originally planned before reserves started dropping like flies. Diallo gave him a more complete lineup, similar to what Denver had been trying throughout the preseason.

But that lineup faced a tough challenge early in the second quarter. Micah Nori put his two best available players on the court against Adelman’s bench: Deni Avdija and Damian Lillard, who has been enjoying a triumphant return to Portland early this season after two years away and a third in Achilles rehab.

It was a precarious matchup, even after Gordon replaced a foul-troubled Trevon Brazile. But the backups were holding their own reasonably well, for a moment. Denver led 36-27 after DeMar DeRozan’s third midrange bucket of the half. Then Lillard finally intervened. He drew a three-shot foul by initiating contact with Diallo, who had been picking him up full-court. On Denver’s next possession, Gordon tried to isolate against the smaller Lillard but got pickpocketed. Portland converted the steal into an easy dunk, and the Nuggets’ lead shrank to five in a 30-second span.

Adelman put Murray and Christian Braun back in the game to see through the remaining non-Jokic minutes. The Nuggets responded with a 7-0 run out of a timeout. But more trouble loomed after Jokic returned. By going back into a zone briefly, Denver dared the Blazers to shoot more 3s after a 3 for 17 start. They punctured Denver’s scheme this time, connecting on five consecutive deep shots.

The first half ended with a 23-9 discrepancy in 3-point attempts — but Denver’s 26-12 edge in free throw attempts canceled it out. Portland had entered the game ranked first in the former and second in the latter.

Ja Morant (left hamstring strain) was out for the Blazers, who started Scoot Henderson in his place. It was Nori’s first game as a head coach at Ball Arena, where he used to work as an assistant under Michael Malone. Sort of his first, anyway. In 2024, Nori cosplayed as the Timberwolves’ head coach during a second-round playoff series against Denver because Chris Finch, their actual head coach, couldn’t roam the sideline due to a leg injury he had suffered during a game.

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