Shortly before the season, I wrote an article examining the Denver Nuggets’ potent offense and discussing why they’re a team to watch this season. Despite their wins and losses both coming in spurts, at 14-7, it’s safe to say this was a fair evaluation. But what’s surprised everyone thus far is that their defense—which was 23rd last year (109.9)—now finds itself at 3rd (103.2). Having not undergone major acquisitions or losses in player personnel, what’s the big reason for the newfound success?

Building a great defense around one-way superstar Nikola Jokic is no easy task, but Mike Malone’s managed to do it. In an era where dropping the big in the PNR is very popular (Jazz with Gobert, Boston with Horford, Thunder with Adams) you’d think that Nuggets would just fall in line with that right? Especially with a slow-footed big in Jokic, you’d think you’d want him to stay in the paint where he can be exploited less easily. But Malone has decided to change the scheme entirely, realizing that something had to change from last year.