Gallinari’s 23 points leads Nuggets over Rockets 105-85

The first hint of a chip came after a stunning victory to open the season. Capela hauled in a team-high 8.8 rebounds during preseason action and Jones returned from a concussion to score 10 points and grab eight boards in the preseason finale at San Antonio on Friday. After not getting a big-named player this offseason despite meeting with players like LaMarcus Aldridge, the Rockets are confident in the versatility they have on the court with their current roster heading into opening night.

The Nuggets hammered the Rockets 105-85 in their own building and didn’t trail a single second in doing so.

“They beat the hell out of us”, Rockets head coach Kevin McHale said. “You can’t let it get to you, ‘ Mudiay told me”. They played harder than we did. This should not come as a shock.

The last time we saw them, everything was a brilliant blur. “Now that promise is that it is just one game”.

“The good thing about it is it’s only game one, so we’ve got 80 (one) more to get better”. Or the season before. “They shot it much better than we did, they moved it better than we did, they executed better than we did, they played harder than we did; There really wasn’t anything I could look at that in there that is something we did better than they did”.

The Nuggets, although Howard was out, looked great tonight.

Its game 5 of the 2015 Western Conference Finals, and the Houston Rockets are fighting to stay alive.

The Nuggets held Houston well below last season’s average of 103.9 points per game. Mudiay also impressed in his first National Basketball Association start, becoming just the fifth player since the 1985-86 season to record at least 17 points and nine assists in his debut.

Houston Rockets guard James Harden (13) reacts on the sideline during the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Toyota Center.

Much of the reason for the Nuggets success came from how they played at the defensive end. “But we feel we have a chance to do something special this year”.

Danilo Gallinari led six Nuggets in double figures with 23 points. The nine assists were the most ever for a Nugget in his first game with the team. Turnovers and a few poor shots helped the Rockets close the quarter on a run, and the quarter ended with the Nuggets up 27-21. “So I’m definitely criticizing myself right now”.

“We were going against the Houston Rockets, which were in the Western Conference finals”, Mudiay said. “I have nothing but confidence in this team”.