The Denver Nuggets were out of sorts at times on offense — until it really mattered. They looked lethargic on defense — until it really, really mattered.

Then, they rose to the occasion. More specifically, Gary Harris did.

Harris scored nine of his 23 points in the fourth quarter and came up with a big steal late to help the Nuggets hold off the short-handed New Orleans Pelicans 116-111 on Monday night after nearly squandering an 18-point lead.

The Nuggets are 5-1 despite feeling like they’ve yet to find their rhythm. That’s encouraging to Harris.

“There’s a different vibe around the team,” Harris said. “Everybody can feel it. … The defense could’ve been better tonight. But we keep getting these wins. That’s the point of it all — the wins.”

Jamal Murray chipped in 23 points and Nikola Jokic had 12 points and 10 assists for his fifth double-double in six games.

Nikola Mirotic came up clutch with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Pelicans, who were without star Anthony Davis (sprained right elbow) and Elfrid Payton (sprained right ankle). Reserve Julius Randle added 24.

Down by 18 points in the third quarter, the Pelicans cut it to 96-94 with 3:50 remaining on a layup from Jrue Holiday. Malik Beasley answered by hitting a 3-pointer and a layup to give the Nuggets all the separation they would need. Harris’ steal with 38 seconds remaining wrapped it up as Denver moved to 4-0 at home.

“We knew this team wasn’t going to back down,” said Paul Millsap, who had 18 points. “It’s when we get out there and try to blow teams out is when we kind of get ourselves in trouble. Taking our time and letting the game come to us, that’s when we’re at our best.”

The Pelicans turned the ball over 22 times, including three costly miscues down the stretch.

“You can’t do that against a really good defensive team like these guys are,” Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. “We just didn’t have enough firepower to finish.”

Randle’s thoughts exactly.

“We just dug ourselves a bit too deep at the end of the first half. That’s what got us,” Randle said. “This was their home-court and we didn’t have enough juice.”

Before the game, Nuggets coach Michael Malone warned his team about not taking the Pelicans too lightly just because they were without Davis. His message apparently didn’t take root, and Denver trailed by nine points during the opening quarter.

The Nuggets woke up from their slumber in the second quarter and grabbed a 58-45 lead at the break and ran the lead to 18 in the third before the Pelicans rallied.

“It’s not about who we’re playing. It’s not about who’s available,” Malone said. “It’s about us.”

TIP-INS

Pelicans: Gentry said Davis is still experiencing some pain in his elbow and was held out for a second straight game as a precaution. “I don’t think it’s anything that we’re worried about,” Gentry said. … Holiday hit 2 of 3 3-pointers before fouling out. He entered the game 3 of 22.

Nuggets: Reserve Trey Lyles had 17 points with his father in the stands.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

The Nuggets took advantage of a three-day break to focus on shooting. They rank near the bottom in 3-point percentage.

“Throughout the NBA season in practice, one of the last things you do is shoot. You’re working on offense, you’re working on defense, special situations,” Malone explained. “Hopefully all that repetition will help us finally make some shots.”

The team was 11 of 35 from 3-point range.

UP NEXT

Pelicans: Stop No. 2 on a five-game trip will be Wednesday against the Golden State Warriors.

 

In other Monday NBA action:

Klay Thompson broke teammate Stephen Curry’s NBA record with 14 3-pointers and scored 52 points in 27 minutes to lead the Golden State Warriors to a 149-124 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Monday.

Thompson set the mark when he nailed a 3 with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. He was then mobbed by teammates as the players headed to the sideline for a timeout, with the Warriors leading 113-69. Curry hit 13 3-pointers in a win over New Orleans on Nov. 7, 2016.

Thompson was 14 of 24 from long range after hitting 5 of 36 through the first seven games and shot 18 of 29 overall. He finished eight points shy of his career high.

— Ben Simmons had 21 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists and the Philadelphia 76ers flashed a little of last year’s playoff form in a 113-92 win over the Atlanta Hawks. Markelle Fultz scored a season-high with 16 points for the Sixers.

— Zach Collins matched his career high with 17 points and C.J. McCollum also had 17 to lead the Portland Trail Blazers to a 103-93 win over the Indiana Pacers. The Blazers have won three straight in the series and eight of the last nine against the Pacers.

— Jimmy Butler hit five of Minnesota’s eight 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to finish with 32 points and help the Timberwolves hang on to beat LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers 124-120. Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points, a season-high 16 rebounds and four blocks for the Timberwolves, who played some clutch defense just in time to fend off a late push from James. The four-time NBA MVP award winner had 10 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, after missing his first five shots of the night.

— Tim Hardaway Jr. had 25 points and eight assists, and the New York Knicks rolled to their second win of the season, beating the Brooklyn Nets 115-96. Frank Ntilikina added 16 points and Enes Kanter had 15 points and 15 rebounds off the bench for the Knicks, who had dropped five straight since beating Atlanta in their season opener.

— Ersan Ilyasova scored a season-high 19 points, Malcolm Brogdon and Eric Bledsoe each added 17 and the Milwaukee Bucks improved to a franchise-best 7-0 on the season by beating the Toronto Raptors 124-109. A game between what had been the last two unbeaten teams left in the NBA went to the Bucks, even if the marquee matchup lost some of its luster with Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined because of injury and Raptors star Kawhi Leonard sitting out for rest.

—Willie Cauley-Stein scored 26 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, Buddy Hield added 23 points and the Sacramento Kings ran past the Miami Heat 123-113. De’Aaron Fox scored 20 points and Nemanja Bjelica added 19 for the Kings, who outscored Miami 77-55 in the middle two quarters and won on the Heat home floor for the second consecutive season.

— DeMar DeRozan had 34 points and nine assists and the San Antonio Spurs withstood a 31-point outburst by Dallas rookie Luka Doncic in a 113-108 overtime victory over the Mavericks on Monday night. LaMarcus Aldridge added 20 points as San Antonio won its second overtime game. DeRozan and Doncic battled in the final minutes of regulation and into overtime in a game that included 10 lead changes and 12 ties.