Game ID: 22500847
Boston Celtics @ Denver Nuggets
Wednesday, February 25, 2026 at 10:00 PM ET
Ball Arena, Denver, CO
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
DEN 21 26 30 26 103BOS 24 24 19 17 84
BOS @ DEN ScoutingBOS @ 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.
DEN availability going into 2/11 · 1 day's restOUT Watson missed 2 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 8 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Jones missed 2 since 2/07, out tonight
BACK Braun back 2/03 after 12, 33 min since (105% of 32)
BACK Johnson back 2/07 after 23, 28 min since (92% of 31)
NEW Strawther 15 to 25 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 2/19 · 7 days' restOUT Watson missed 3 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 9 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Jones missed 3 since 2/07, returns tonight: 16 min (74% of 22)
OUT Nnaji missed 2 since 2/09, out tonight
BACK Braun back 2/03 after 12, 34 min since (108% of 32)
BACK Johnson back 2/07 after 23, 28 min since (93% of 31)
NEW Brown 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Strawther 15 to 26 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 2/20 · back-to-backOUT Watson missed 4 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 10 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Nnaji missed 3 since 2/09, returns tonight: 8 min (70% of 12)
BACK Johnson back 2/07 after 23, 30 min since (99% of 31)
BACK Jones back 2/19 after 3, 16 min since (74% of 22)
NEW Brown 24 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Strawther 15 to 26 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 2/22 · 1 day's restOUT Watson missed 5 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 11 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 2 since 2/19, out tonight
BACK Johnson back 2/07 after 23, 29 min since (96% of 31)
BACK Jones back 2/19 after 3, 23 min since (104% of 22)
BACK Nnaji back 2/20 after 3, 8 min since (70% of 12)
NEW Strawther 15 to 28 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 2/25 · 2 days' restOUT Watson missed 6 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 12 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 3 since 2/19, out tonight
BACK Jones back 2/19 after 3, 20 min since (88% of 22)
BACK Nnaji back 2/20 after 3, 8 min since (70% of 12)
NEW Strawther 15 to 25 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 2/27 · 1 day's restOUT Watson missed 7 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 13 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 4 since 2/19, out tonight
BACK Jones back 2/19 after 3, 21 min since (95% of 22)
BACK Nnaji back 2/20 after 3, 8 min since (64% of 12)
NEW Strawther 15 to 25 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 3/01 · 1 day's restOUT Watson missed 8 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 14 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Pickett missed 5 since 2/19, returns tonight: 6 min (41% of 16)
BACK Jones back 2/19 after 3, 18 min since (78% of 22)
BACK Nnaji back 2/20 after 3, 8 min since (64% of 12)
NEW Strawther 15 to 23 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 3/02 · back-to-backOUT Watson missed 9 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 15 since 1/27, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 3/01 after 5, 6 min since (41% of 16)
BACK Nnaji back 2/20 after 3, 7 min since (60% of 12)
NEW Strawther 15 to 21 min over the last 5
DEN availability going into 3/05 · 2 days' restOUT Watson missed 10 since 2/07, out tonight
OUT Gordon missed 16 since 1/27, out tonight
OUT Jones missed 2 since 3/01, out tonight
BACK Pickett back 3/01 after 5, 12 min since (80% of 16)
NEW Brown 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Strawther 15 to 21 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 2/11 · 2 days' rest
full strength
BOS availability going into 2/19 · 7 days' restNEW Vučević 20 to 26 min over the last 3
NEW Scheierman 18 to 25 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 2/22 · 2 days' restNEW Vučević 20 to 26 min over the last 4
NEW Scheierman 18 to 24 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 2/24 · 1 day's restNEW Scheierman 18 to 25 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 2/25 · back-to-backNEW Scheierman 18 to 28 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 2/27 · 1 day's restNEW Scheierman 18 to 27 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/01 · 1 day's restNEW Scheierman 18 to 26 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/02 · back-to-backNEW Scheierman 18 to 28 min over the last 5
BOS availability going into 3/04 · 1 day's restNEW Scheierman 18 to 27 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 32 free throws a game; Jokić at 27 and Murray at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. Without Watson (6 straight), Gordon (12 straight), Pickett (3 straight). 2 days' rest. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 99, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 13 free throws a game; Brown at 26 and Pritchard at 19 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 13 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the line, where Denver takes 32 free throws a game to Boston's 13 and the defense, Boston allowing 99 a night to Denver's 116. Call it Denver 115, Boston 112, Boston keeping it close.
2/11 vs MEM 122-116 — DEN notes
DEN won 122-116. DEN shot 53% (43 of 81) to MEM's 46%, 10 of 22 from three, and went to the line 32 times to MEM's 21 — 26 points from the stripe to their 17. DEN turned it over 14 times to MEM's 6, and MEM turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 46-29 for them. Jokić led with 26 (8 of 17, 10 of 14 at the line); Murray added 23, Hardaway Jr. 21. The hinge was Q3, 33-27: a lead of 6 became 12, and the lead reached 15. Braun was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
2/19 @ LAC 114-115 — DEN notes
DEN lost 114-115. DEN shot 45% (39 of 86) to LAC's 47%, 13 of 40 from three. DEN turned it over 17 times to LAC's 12, and LAC turned those into 9 steals. Jokić led with 22 (9 of 22, 0 of 6 from three, 4 of 7 at the line); Murray added 20, Brown 19. Q2 was theirs, 28-20, turning a 1-point deficit into a 7-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 95-86 against them. They led by as many as 10.
2/20 @ POR 157-103 — DEN notes
DEN won 157-103. DEN shot 57% (55 of 96) to POR's 41%, 21 of 41 from three. The glass went 60-36 for them. Jokić led with 32 (10 of 15, 3 of 4 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); J. Murray added 25, Strawther 19. The hinge was Q2, 41-26: a lead of 14 became 29, and the lead reached 55. Strawther was the night's best plus/minus at +48.
2/22 @ GSW 117-128 — DEN notes
DEN lost 117-128. DEN shot 46% (42 of 91) to GSW's 51%, 8 of 31 from three, and went to the line 29 times to GSW's 12 — 25 points from the stripe to their 11. Jokić led with 35 (11 of 21, 3 of 4 from three, 10 of 11 at the line); Murray added 21, Braun 18. Q3 was theirs, 34-19, turning a 9-point deficit into a 6-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 109-83 against them. Brown's -17 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/25 vs BOS 103-84 — DEN notes
DEN won 103-84. DEN shot 42% (39 of 93) to BOS's 35%, 15 of 43 from three. DEN turned it over 8 times to BOS's 13. Jokić led with 30 (11 of 28, 4 of 13 from three, 4 of 7 at the line); Hardaway Jr. added 14, Strawther 12. The hinge was Q3, 30-19: DEN came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 10, and the lead reached 19. DEN trailed 47-48 at the half and won the second half 56-36. Jones was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
2/27 @ OKC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
OKC comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 108, shooting 43 percent and 40 from three, 21 free throws a game; Wallace at 16 and Joe at 15 a game. Without Gilgeous-Alexander (9 straight), Jal. Williams (5 straight), Mitchell (15 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 123 a night and allowing 109, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 28 free throws a game; Jokić at 29 and Murray at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Watson (7 straight), Gordon (13 straight), Pickett (4 straight). One day's rest.
So: OKC wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-9 a night and OKC plus-1 and the line, where Denver takes 28 free throws a game to OKC's 21. Call it OKC 115, Denver 113, Denver keeping it close.
3/01 vs MIN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 111, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 26 free throws a game; Jokić at 28 and Murray at 21 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Watson (8 straight), Gordon (14 straight), Pickett (5 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 113, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 29 and Randle at 18 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-5 a night and Minnesota plus-0. Call it Denver 118, Minnesota 114, Minnesota keeping it close.
3/02 @ UTA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Utah comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 125, shooting 44 percent and 30 from three, 27 free throws a game; Sensabaugh at 19 and Collier at 18 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Kessler (55 straight), Bamba (2 straight). One day's rest. Denver comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 112, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 26 free throws a game; Jokić at 31 and Murray at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Watson (9 straight), Gordon (15 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Denver wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Denver has been plus-6 a night and Utah minus-10 and the defense, Denver allowing 112 a night to Utah's 125. Call it Denver 121, Utah 116.
3/05 vs LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 116, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Jokić at 29 and Murray at 26 a game. Without Watson (10 straight), Gordon (16 straight), Jones (2 straight). 2 days' rest. The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 106, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 24 free throws a game; Dončić at 29 and James at 21 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Vanderbilt (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the defense, the Lakers allowing 106 a night to Denver's 116 and the arc, the Lakers at 39 percent from three to Denver's 34. Call it Denver 116, the Lakers 115, the Lakers keeping it close.
2/11 vs CHI 124-105 — BOS notes
BOS won 124-105. BOS shot 52% (49 of 95) to CHI's 46%, 18 of 45 from three. The glass went 48-34 for them. Pritchard led with 26 (11 of 18, 3 of 8 from three); Brown added 24, Vučević 19. The hinge was Q2, 36-17: a lead of 9 became 28, and the lead reached 33. Vučević was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
2/19 @ GSW 121-110 — BOS notes
BOS won 121-110. BOS shot 52% (49 of 95) to GSW's 45%, 17 of 40 from three. BOS turned it over 13 times to GSW's 8, and GSW turned those into 8 steals. The glass went 54-40 for them. Pritchard led with 26 (10 of 18, 6 of 11 from three); Brown added 23, Hauser 16. The hinge was Q2, 38-19: a lead of 4 became 23, and the lead reached 34. Hauser was the night's best plus/minus at +22.
2/22 @ LAL 111-89 — BOS notes
BOS won 111-89. BOS shot 48% (40 of 83) to LAL's 39%, 14 of 36 from three. BOS turned it over 14 times to LAL's 8. The glass went 50-39 for them. Brown led with 32 (10 of 28, 3 of 9 from three, 9 of 12 at the line); Pritchard added 30, White 12. The hinge was Q2, 32-22: from level to 10 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Pritchard was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
2/24 @ PHX 97-81 — BOS notes
BOS won 97-81. BOS shot 40% (38 of 95) to PHX's 37%, 13 of 47 from three. The glass went 61-34 for them. White led with 22 (9 of 18, 4 of 11 from three); Hauser added 16, Queta 14. The hinge was Q3, 30-11: a lead of 4 became 23, and the lead reached 28. Queta was the night's best plus/minus at +29.
2/25 @ DEN 84-103 — BOS notes
BOS lost 84-103. BOS shot 35% (29 of 83) to DEN's 42%, 12 of 43 from three. BOS turned it over 13 times to DEN's 8. J. Brown led with 23 (7 of 21, 1 of 6 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); White added 20, Queta 10. Q1 was theirs, 24-21, but the other 3 periods went 82-60 against them. White's -20 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/27 vs BKN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 98, shooting 45 percent and 35 from three, 14 free throws a game; Brown at 26 and Pritchard at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 12 a night. One day's rest. Brooklyn comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 100 a night and allowing 116, shooting 43 percent and 31 from three, 22 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 21 and Claxton at 14 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. Without Saraf (5 straight), Johnson (22 straight), Etienne (36 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-12 a night and Brooklyn minus-10 and the defense, Boston allowing 98 a night to Brooklyn's 116. Call it Boston 115, Brooklyn 101, Boston by 14.
3/01 vs PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 99, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 16 free throws a game; Brown at 26 and Pritchard at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 12 a night. One day's rest. Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 116, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 27 free throws a game; Maxey at 31 and Edgecombe at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without George (12 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-12 a night and Philadelphia plus-0 and the defense, Boston allowing 99 a night to Philadelphia's 116. Call it Boston 116, Philadelphia 110.
3/02 @ MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Milwaukee comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 120, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 16 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 19 and Rollins at 17 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Gia. Antetokounmpo (15 straight), Prince (51 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 96, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 19 free throws a game; Brown at 28 and White at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 14 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Boston has been plus-14 a night and Milwaukee minus-5 and the defense, Boston allowing 96 a night to Milwaukee's 120. Call it Boston 114, Milwaukee 107.
3/04 vs CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Boston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 95, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 17 free throws a game; Brown at 26 and White at 19 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 14 a night. One day's rest. Charlotte comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 101, shooting 49 percent and 45 from three, 19 free throws a game; Miller at 24 and Ball at 21 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 12 a night. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Boston wins, and the game turns on the arc, Charlotte at 45 percent from three to Boston's 37 and the turnovers, Charlotte giving it away 15 times a game to Boston's 11. Call it Boston 112, Charlotte 108, Charlotte keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
BOSBS B. Scheierman
DB D. Banton
DW D. White
GO Gonzalez
HG H. González
JB J. Brown
JW J. Walsh
LG L. Garza
NQ N. Queta
NV N. Vučević
PP P. Pritchard
RH R. Harper Jr.
SH S. Hauser
VU Vucevic
DENBB B. Brown
CB C. Braun
CJ C. Johnson
DH D. Holmes II
JM J. Murray
JS J. Strawther
JV J. Valančiūnas
JO Jokic
KS K. Simpson
NJ N. Jokić
SJ S. Jones
TH T. Hardaway Jr.
VA Valanciunas
ZN Z. Nnaji
BOS/DEN 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 has 30 points and 12 rebounds in the Nuggets' 103-84 win over the Celtics
DENVER -- — Nikola Jokic had 30 points and 12 rebounds on a rough shooting night to help the Denver Nuggets beat the Boston Celtics 103-84 on Wednesday.
Denver played most of the game without guard Jamal Murray . He left after logging 7:51 due to an illness and did not return.
Tim Hardaway Jr . added 14 points as the Nuggets bounced back from a 1-2 trip out of the All-Star break, which included a loss at Golden State on Sunday. They kept pace with Houston in the tight Western Conference standings. Denver is percentage points behind the Rockets for third place.
Jaylen Brown returned to Boston's lineup after sitting out Tuesday night at Phoenix with a right knee contusion. Brown had 23 points for the Celtics, who finished 3-1 on a Western Conference trip. They had won five straight and nine of 10 before running out of steam in the thin air.
Colorado native Derrick White scored 18 of his 20 points in the second quarter.
Jokic struggled from the field and behind the arc. He shot 11 of 28 overall and was 4 of 13 on 3-pointers, but helped spark an 11-0 run to end the third quarter that gave Denver a 10-point lead heading into the final period.
The Nuggets extended the lead to 17 on Jonas Valanciunas’ tip-in midway through the fourth, and Boston coach Joe Mazzulla took out his starters.
Denver honored Doug Moe with a tribute video at the first timeout. Moe, who won 432 games in his 10 seasons as the Nuggets' coach, died Feb. 17 at 87. He led them to the Western Conference finals in 1985 and won two Midwest Division titles with Denver.