The Denver Nuggets were manhandled on the glass en route to a deflating 118-110 home loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday. 

The Nuggets dropped to 3-3 on the year, succumbing 53-37 in the rebounding battle. That included 21 offensive boards for the visitors, leading to the Blazers outscoring Denver by 10 points in the paint. 

Nikola Jokic has averaged double-digit rebounds in each of the last six seasons. He's grabbing 9.7 per game at present, still a fine number, but one that the Nuggets need to consider as a call to action, according to star point guard Jamal Murray. 

"We have to help [Jokic] out," Murray said. "I think we just got accustomed to him grabbing so many boards, every single matchup, every single night, that when he doesn't get the tip, we have to go get it. That takes everybody." 

That's flatly what it felt like Murray was hinting at. 

He went further, recalling a few instances where he could've challenged for a rebound but thought Jokic had it, and it ended with Portland getting second-chance opportunities. Other times, he said players might be tired or too far away, but there are no excuses. They have to get in there and fight for the team. 

With Jokic now 31 years old, there will be some younger, athletic centers who will be able to find some success against him. Trail Blazers' Donovan Clingan dominated the matchup with 17 points and 18 rebounds.

That can't happen with how important Jokic is to the Nuggets' operation. They need to find solutions to help their three-time MVP, and they have enough high fliers to not get mauled like that on the glass. 

Denver also needs more reliable scoring. Outside of Murray (35 points), Jokic (26 points), and Christian Braun (14 points), no other Nugget reached double figures. The remaining starters, Cam Johnson (7) and Aaron Gordon (5), combined for 12 points. Portland's bench outscored the Nuggets 36-23. 

The Nuggets were in control for most of the game and held a 66-58 halftime lead. 

The script was flipped after the interval, as the Trail Blazers outscored their hosts 60-44 in the second half. 

Deni Avdija was the catalyst with 28 points. Damian Lillard added 20. 

The Nuggets got signature performances from Murray and Jokic, but that was about it. Murray chipped in five rebounds and six assists to his game-high scoring tally, shooting 10-of-19 from the field in 39 minutes. Jokic grabbed nine boards, dished out eight dimes, and came up with five stocks (four steals, one block). 

The Trail Blazers are legitimately good this season, now 5-1. However, with their lack of depth, the Nuggets can ill afford to have the rug pulled out from under them like that when they're in winning positions.