Game ID: 22500340
Denver Nuggets @ Atlanta Hawks
Friday, December 5, 2025 at 7:30 PM ET
State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
ATL 41 32 30 30 133DEN 23 31 40 40 134
ATL vs DEN ScoutingATL vs DEN Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
ATL availability going into 11/28 · 2 days' restOUT Young missed 14 since 10/31, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 11/20 after 3, 28 min since (115% of 24)
NEW Krejčí 22 to 28 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 15 since 10/31, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 11/20 after 3, 28 min since (115% of 24)
ATL availability going into 12/01 · back-to-backOUT Young missed 16 since 10/31, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 11/28, out tonight
NEW Gueye 15 to 22 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 12/03 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 17 since 10/31, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 11/28, out tonight
NEW Gueye 15 to 21 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 12/05 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 18 since 10/31, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 4 since 11/28, returns tonight: 20 min (84% of 24)
NEW Risacher 22 to 28 min over the last 5
NEW Gueye 15 to 22 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 12/06 · back-to-backOUT Young missed 19 since 10/31, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 12/05 after 4, 20 min since (84% of 24)
NEW Gueye 15 to 20 min over the last 5
ATL availability going into 12/12 · 5 days' restOUT Young missed 20 since 10/31, out tonight
BACK Porziņģis back 12/05 after 4, 20 min since (84% of 24)
ATL availability going into 12/14 · 1 day's restOUT Young missed 21 since 10/31, out tonight
OUT Porziņģis missed 2 since 12/06, out tonight
ATL availability going into 12/18 · 3 days' restOUT Young missed 22 since 10/31, returns tonight: 20 min (72% of 28)
OUT Porziņģis missed 3 since 12/06, out tonight
DEN availability going into 11/28 · 3 days' restOUT Braun missed 6 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 2 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 4 since 11/19, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 5 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Nnaji back 11/19 after 2, 21 min since (173% of 12)
DEN availability going into 11/29 · back-to-backOUT Braun missed 7 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 3 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 5 since 11/19, returns tonight: 2 min (10% of 16)
OUT Strawther missed 6 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Nnaji back 11/19 after 2, 18 min since (154% of 12)
DEN availability going into 12/01 · 1 day's restOUT Braun missed 8 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 4 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 7 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 11/29 after 5, 2 min since (10% of 16)
BACK Nnaji back 11/24 after 2, 12 min since (102% of 12)
NEW Johnson 31 to 36 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/03 · 1 day's restOUT Braun missed 9 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 5 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 8 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 11/29 after 5, 2 min since (10% of 16)
BACK Nnaji back 11/24 after 2, 11 min since (88% of 12)
NEW Johnson 31 to 37 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/05 · 1 day's restOUT Braun missed 10 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 6 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 9 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 11/29 after 5, 2 min since (10% of 16)
BACK Nnaji back 11/24 after 2, 11 min since (90% of 12)
NEW Johnson 31 to 36 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/07 · 1 day's restOUT Braun missed 11 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 7 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 10 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 11/29 after 5, 2 min since (10% of 16)
DEN availability going into 12/11 · 3 days' restOUT Braun missed 12 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 8 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 11 since 11/17, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 11/29 after 5, 6 min since (41% of 16)
NEW Johnson 31 to 36 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 12/15 · 3 days' restOUT Braun missed 13 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 9 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 12 since 11/17, out tonight
DEN availability going into 12/18 · 2 days' restOUT Braun missed 14 since 11/15, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 10 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT Strawther missed 13 since 11/17, returns tonight: 6 min (40% of 15)
NEW Johnson 31 to 37 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 121, shooting 45 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Johnson at 26 and Alexander-Walker at 24 a game. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Young (18 straight), Porziņģis (4 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 129 a night and allowing 123, shooting 53 percent and 48 from three, 22 free throws a game; Murray at 30 and Jokić at 23 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Braun (10 straight), Gordon (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 48 percent from three to Atlanta's 35 and the glass, where Denver has been plus-5 a night and Atlanta minus-6. Call it Denver 121, Atlanta 118, Atlanta keeping it close.
11/28 vs CLE 130-123 — ATL notes
ATL won 130-123. ATL shot 53% (48 of 91) to CLE's 46%, 16 of 43 from three, and went to the line 26 times to CLE's 20 — 18 points from the stripe to their 18. ATL turned it over 12 times to CLE's 17. The glass went 38-48 against them. Alexander-Walker led with 30 (10 of 22, 5 of 13 from three); Johnson added 29, Okongwu 18. The hinge was Q1, 33-23: from level to 10 ahead. ATL trailed 60-62 at the half and won the second half 70-61. Johnson was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
11/30 @ PHI 142-134 — ATL notes
ATL won 142-134 in 2 overtimes. ATL shot 46% (48 of 104) to PHI's 44%, 15 of 45 from three. The glass went 58-46 for them. Johnson led with 41 (10 of 21, 4 of 8 from three, 17 of 22 at the line); Alexander-Walker added 34, Daniels 17. The hinge was OT2, 16-8: from level to 8 ahead. ATL trailed 57-58 at the half and won the second half 85-76. Alexander-Walker was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
12/01 @ DET 98-99 — ATL notes
ATL lost 98-99. ATL shot 43% (38 of 89) to DET's 44%, 14 of 40 from three, and got to the line 11 times to DET's 24. ATL turned it over 13 times to DET's 22. The glass went 34-60 against them. Johnson led with 29 (9 of 17, 4 of 8 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Alexander-Walker added 26, Okongwu 20. Q4 was theirs, 30-25, the deficit cut from 6 to 1, but the other 3 periods went 74-68 against them.
12/03 vs LAC 92-115 — ATL notes
ATL lost 92-115. ATL shot 40% (34 of 85) to LAC's 49%, 13 of 39 from three, and got to the line 14 times to LAC's 20. The glass went 38-54 against them. Alexander-Walker led with 21 (7 of 18, 2 of 7 from three, 5 of 7 at the line); Daniels added 15, Risacher 11. Q4 was theirs, 19-21, but the other 3 periods went 94-73 against them. Krejčí's -25 in 21 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/05 vs DEN 133-134 — ATL notes
ATL lost 133-134. ATL shot 52% (49 of 95) to DEN's 53%, 20 of 46 from three, and got to the line 16 times to DEN's 30. Alexander-Walker led with 30 (10 of 17, 5 of 9 from three); Porziņģis added 25, J. Johnson 21. Q1 was theirs, 41-23, but the other 3 periods went 111-92 against them. They led by as many as 23. Okongwu's -18 in 28 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/06 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 125, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; McCollum at 23 and Bagley III at 13 a game. Without Sarr (3 straight), Johnson (6 straight), Kispert (4 straight). One day's rest. Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Johnson at 30 and Alexander-Walker at 28 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 7 a night. Without Young (19 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Atlanta wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Washington has been minus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-7. Call it Atlanta 120, Washington 117, Washington keeping it close.
12/12 @ DET — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Detroit comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 30 free throws a game; Cunningham at 23 and Harris at 16 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. 5 days' rest. Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 120, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 19 free throws a game; Johnson at 30 and Alexander-Walker at 26 a game. Without Young (20 straight). 5 days' rest.
So: Detroit wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Detroit has been plus-8 a night and Atlanta minus-2 and the line, where Detroit takes 30 free throws a game to Atlanta's 19. Call it Detroit 120, Atlanta 115.
12/14 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 121, shooting 47 percent and 36 from three, 17 free throws a game; Johnson at 25 and Alexander-Walker at 23 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Young (21 straight), Porziņģis (2 straight). One day's rest. Philadelphia comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 104, shooting 43 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Maxey at 28 and Embiid at 22 a game. Without Oubre Jr. (12 straight), Bona (2 straight), Watford (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Philadelphia allowing 104 a night to Atlanta's 121 and the glass, where Philadelphia has been plus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-5. Call it Philadelphia 116, Atlanta 114, Atlanta keeping it close.
12/18 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 112, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 21 free throws a game; Knueppel at 22 and Bridges at 20 a game. Without Ball (3 straight), Sexton (4 straight), Williams (19 straight). 3 days' rest. Atlanta comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 125, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Johnson at 20 and Alexander-Walker at 20 a game. Without Young (22 straight), Porziņģis (3 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Charlotte wins, and the game turns on the defense, Charlotte allowing 112 a night to Atlanta's 125. Call it Charlotte 119, Atlanta 115, Atlanta keeping it close.
11/28 vs SAS 136-139 — DEN notes
DEN lost 136-139. DEN shot 53% (48 of 91) to SAS's 49%, 16 of 39 from three. DEN turned it over 16 times to SAS's 8, and SAS turned those into 10 steals. Murray led with 37 (13 of 20, 5 of 8 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); C. Johnson added 28, Jokić 21. Q2 was theirs, 41-18, turning a 8-point deficit into a 15-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 121-95 against them. They led by as many as 18. Hardaway Jr.'s -16 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
11/29 @ PHX 130-112 — DEN notes
DEN won 130-112. DEN shot 58% (44 of 76) to PHX's 44%, 22 of 38 from three. DEN turned it over 16 times to PHX's 7, and PHX turned those into 11 steals. Jokić led with 26 (7 of 7, 10 of 11 at the line); Murray added 24, Hardaway Jr. 23. The hinge was Q3, 33-25: a lead of 3 became 11, and the lead reached 21. Watson was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
12/01 vs DAL 121-131 — DEN notes
DEN lost 121-131. DEN shot 47% (47 of 99) to DAL's 56%, 12 of 37 from three. Jokić led with 29 (10 of 24, 3 of 10 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Jones added 28, Watson 15. Q1 was theirs, 41-27, but the other 3 periods went 104-80 against them. They led by as many as 17. Johnson's -14 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/03 @ IND 135-120 — DEN notes
DEN won 135-120. DEN shot 59% (49 of 83) to IND's 52%, 17 of 28 from three. Murray led with 52 (19 of 25, 10 of 11 from three); Jokić added 24, Brown 14. The hinge was Q2, 39-20: a lead of 5 became 24, and the lead reached 29. Jokić was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
12/05 @ ATL 134-133 — DEN notes
DEN won 134-133. DEN shot 53% (47 of 89) to ATL's 52%, 16 of 37 from three, and went to the line 30 times to ATL's 16 — 24 points from the stripe to their 15. Jokić led with 40 (13 of 26, 1 of 8 from three, 13 of 15 at the line); Murray added 23, Hardaway Jr. 17. The hinge was Q3, 40-30: the deficit went from 19 to 9. DEN trailed 54-73 at the half and won the second half 80-60.
12/07 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 25 free throws a game; Bridges at 18 and Ball at 17 a game. Without Williams (16 straight), Green (15 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 131 a night and allowing 127, shooting 54 percent and 46 from three, 25 free throws a game; Murray at 29 and Jokić at 28 a game. Without Braun (11 straight), Gordon (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 46 percent from three to Charlotte's 32 and the defense, Charlotte allowing 110 a night to Denver's 127. Call it Denver 119, Charlotte 118, Charlotte keeping it close.
12/11 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 118, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 22 free throws a game; LaVine at 23 and DeRozan at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Sabonis (10 straight), Plowden (12 straight), Schröder (6 straight). 2 days' rest. Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 127 a night and allowing 120, shooting 53 percent and 46 from three, 23 free throws a game; Jokić at 29 and Murray at 29 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Braun (12 straight), Gordon (8 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 46 percent from three to Sacramento's 34 and the glass, where Denver has been minus-1 a night and Sacramento minus-8. Call it Denver 121, Sacramento 115.
12/15 vs HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 119, shooting 54 percent and 42 from three, 25 free throws a game; Jokić at 31 and Murray at 26 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Braun (13 straight), Gordon (9 straight). 3 days' rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 112, shooting 50 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Sengun at 27 and Durant at 25 a game. It has won the glass by 12 a night. Without Eason (11 straight), Finney-Smith (22 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-12 a night and Denver minus-1 and the turnovers, Houston giving it away 17 times a game to Denver's 10. Call it Denver 120, Houston 116, Houston keeping it close.
12/18 vs ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 130 a night and allowing 118, shooting 55 percent and 45 from three, 28 free throws a game; Jokić at 33 and Murray at 31 a game. That is 5 straight wins. Without Braun (14 straight), Gordon (10 straight). 2 days' rest. Orlando comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 45 percent and 34 from three, 23 free throws a game; Fra. Wagner at 22 and Bane at 22 a game. 4 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 45 percent from three to Orlando's 34 and the defense, Orlando allowing 111 a night to Denver's 118. Call it Denver 120, Orlando 115.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
DENBB B. Brown
CJ C. Johnson
JM J. Murray
JV J. Valančiūnas
JO Jokic
NJ N. Jokić
PW P. Watson
SJ S. Jones
TH T. Hardaway Jr.
VA Valanciunas
ZN Z. Nnaji
ATLDD D. Daniels
JJ J. Johnson
KP K. Porziņģis
KW K. Wallace
KR Krejci
LK L. Kennard
MG M. Gueye
NA N. Alexander-Walker
OO O. Okongwu
PO Porzingis
VK V. Krejčí
ZR Z. Risacher
DEN/ATL the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Jokic scores 39 points as Nuggets use big fourth quarter to rally for 134-133 win over Hawks
ATLANTA -- — Nikola Jokic scored 39 points and the Denver Nuggets rallied from 23 points down with a big fourth quarter to beat the Atlanta Hawks 134-133 on Friday night.
Jamal Murray had 23 points and 12 assists, and Tim Hardaway Jr . scored 17 points for the Nuggets, who have won nine straight road games.
The Hawks had a chance for a tying 3-pointer on their final possession, but Murray blocked the attempt by Nickeil Alexander-Walker . The loose ball led to a layup by Alexander-Walker with 2 seconds left, and the Nuggets quickly inbounded the ball and ran out the clock.
Jalen Johnson had 21 points, 18 rebounds and a career-high 16 assists for the Hawks, who have lost three straight. Johnson, who missed Wednesday’s game with a strained calf, became the first Hawks player in the play-by-play era to record a triple-double by halftime. He had 11 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists at the break.
Alexander-Walker finished with 30 points and Kristaps Porzingas had 25.
Jokic shot 2 for 13 in the first half, but ended 13 for 26 and had nine rebounds and eight assists.
The Nuggets trailed 103-94 at the end of the third quarter, but opened the fourth with a 23-3 blitz, all with Jokic on the bench. Cam Johnson had three 3-pointers during the run and the Nuggets hit their first seven 3-pointers of the fourth.
The Hawks took a big lead in the first quarter. Atlanta hit 13 of its first 15 shots and had 13 assists by quarter's end, a season-high for a single quarter. The Hawks led 41-23 at the quarter and their lead topped out at 63-40 in the second quarter.
Up next Nuggets play at Charlotte on Sunday for the third of a four-game trip. Hawks visit Washington on Saturday in their fifth back-to-back this season.