Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scores season-high to lead Nuggets past Hawks

The Nuggets harnessed the power of the white headband to execute a bounce-back blowout.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, one of six players in Denver’s rotation wearing one, scored a season-high 24 points Saturday night to lead the way in a 142-110 win over the Atlanta Hawks at Ball Arena. The team made a season-high 23 outside shots.

“When we struggled a few games since the All-Star break at making shots, it wasn’t like we were getting bad looks,” coach Michael Malone said. “We just were not making open and wide-open looks. And I think (Caldwell-Pope) is getting tremendous looks from his teammates. And he’s just stepping in, shooting it with great confidence. He’s one of the best shooters in the league.”

The Nuggets (54-24) moved a half-game in front of the Timberwolves for first place in the Western Conference with four games remaining, aided by Minnesota’s and Oklahoma City’s coinciding losses Friday. After two days off, the defending champions will play their final back-to-back of the season, starting in Utah before a consequential clash with Minnesota.

“Oh, it’s lit,” Peyton Watson said after finding out the team has two days between games for the first time in more than a month. Upon subsequently learning about the back-to-back, he said, “We’ve got a back-to-back? I’ve gotta start looking at the schedule.”

Two nights after their bench was outscored 21-0 in the first half of a loss to the Clippers, the Nuggets were buoyed by 58 points from the bench. Michael Malone’s second unit consisted entirely of players wearing white headbands: Reggie Jackson, Justin Holiday, Julian Strawther, Watson and Zeke Nnaji, who was back from a back injury after missing the last nine games. That lineup produced a 16-7 run to start the second quarter, helping the Nuggets establish a double-digit lead before the starters blew it open in the third.

“We call it the headband highlights tonight, man,” said Watson, who had 13 points, six rebounds and a resounding five blocks. “It was a good group of guys. Went in there and played hard. Not a drop of sweat on our faces.”

Watson doesn’t usually wear a headband because he doesn’t like how it disrupts his hairdo. But he donned one Saturday because he wanted to try out a different material. The fact that all five players in the same lineup wore one was mere coincidence. “I don’t think everybody knew who was gonna play tonight, because our rotation kind of changes a lot,” Watson said.

Also back from injury was Jamal Murray, who supplied 16 points and six assists on 6 of 11 shooting in a suitably modest 20 minutes. He had missed seven consecutive games with an injury categorized as right knee inflammation, though he has also been dealing with shin splints and multiple ankle injuries this season. On top of that, he was wearing wraps around his knee as well as his back when he began to warm up. In a ginger pregame routine, he briefly took a seat on the bench before shedding the knee wrap and continuing.

Behind him at point guard, Jackson scored a refreshing 18 points while while playing through an illness. He could be seen removing a surgical mask at the scorer’s table when he checked in for the first time.

“I didn’t think he was gonna play,” Malone said. “I didn’t give him any daps all night. I gave him my elbow the whole night. I’m trying to stay healthy here.”