It’s safe to say the Denver Nuggets are firing on all cylinders after they went 4-0 on a recent four-game road stretch, extending their overall road winning streak to an impressive 12 games. The Nuggets have also gotten off to their fastest start through 24 games in franchise history, as Thursday’s 136-105 win over the Sacramento Kings pushed their record to 16-8 on the year.

After a much-needed off-day on Friday, the Nuggets hit the court for practice on Saturday ahead of Monday’s nationally broadcast clash against the Houston Rockets in Denver. Coach David Adelman addressed the media after the session, complimenting his team’s ability to stay “professional” throughout the game, as superstar Nikola Jokic has often said this season. 

“I just thought we were really, consistently professional throughout the whole game, all the way through,” Adelman said. “The last four minutes, the way Hunter played, it was just a complete win, which is really hard to do in the NBA.  

“I think people think it's easy to do that for 48 minutes. It's not, but I thought we really stayed locked in throughout. On both ends, it was one of our better games. Obviously, they had guys out, but, yeah, I was just impressed with the approach overall.”

Perhaps most impressive about the Nuggets’ recent stretch is that they’ve been playing so well despite being considerably shorthanded. The Nuggets have been without Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun and Julian Strawther all for extended periods of time at this point.

Adelman provided a brief update on their conditions on Saturday and provided more clarity on Strawther after Sunday's practice.

“They’re non-contact,” Adelman said. “They got up and down with us, which was good. It was mostly a conditioning day anyway. Julian’s obviously getting to contact now, but (Gordon and Braun) are still a ways away from that.”

After Sunday's practice, Adelman indicated that Strawther could potentially make his return as soon as Monday.

"The hope is that (Monday), he checks in with medical and maybe they give him the pass to go ahead and play," Adelman said. "But I'm very hopeful this week is the week."

With those players out of the lineup, reserve guard Jalen Pickett has received an increased role in the Nuggets’ rotation. Adelman had some words of encouragement for Pickett and described how he fits into the team’s game plan. 

“I think he has to get used to the fact that when he plays with Bruce (Brown), and he's out there with Peyton (Watson) a little bit, that a lot of guys can bring the ball up,” Adelman said. “So, it was good to see him play off the ball a little bit, playing the split games high and low, because that's who we are. The more he can do that and get comfortable off the ball, the better we'll be.”