The Denver Nuggets did not look like the underdog on Saturday night against the Phoenix Suns.

The Nuggets, who are the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, are not favored to get out of the West. The Suns are.

But Phoenix clearly looked like the lower seed in its 125-107 loss to the Nuggets in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series at Ball Arena in Denver. There are plenty of issues that need fixing.

The Suns have the more talented roster but did not have the best players on the floor Saturday. Nuggets guard Jamal Murray destroyed the Suns from the 3-point line, in the pick-and-roll and in transition to the tune of 34 points on 13-of-24 shooting. He also had nine assists.

Murray’s second of two transition 3-pointers with 6:57 left was indicative of who he is in the postseason: Somebody the NBA should be very scared of.

The Nuggets also got the better of the Suns in shooting – especially from 3-point range, where they made 16-of-37 attempts while Phoenix made just seven triples — rebounding and in the turnover margin.

Denver had a 49-38 edge on the glass and had 16 offensive rebounds compared to Phoenix’s eight. The Suns also had 16 turnovers that led to more opportunities in transition for Denver.

Phoenix has a chance to respond in Game 2 Monday, but it clearly looked like the inferior team Saturday night.

Here are the three biggest reasons for the Suns’ loss.

Jamal Murray’s scorcher of a game 

Murray, who tore his ACL in April 2021, sat on the sideline when the Nuggets were swept by the Suns in the second round that season. Even though he returned for this series, Murray’s impact was perhaps overlooked by the Suns’ presence of Durant, who is expected to give them a push toward their first-ever title.

Durant looked like the best player on the floor in the first quarter, but Murray showed he was for the entire game. He had 10 points in the first, third and fourth quarters, and he dissected the Suns’ defense and made them look lost constantly.

Murray’s playoff numbers in the NBA playoff bubble were sensational. He averaged 26.5 points for the Nuggets en route to the Western Conference Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.

Murray destroyed mismatches, hit 3-pointers and was ultimately the Nuggets’ star of the show Saturday night. He is going to be a huge player going forward.

Effort stats, including rebounding and turnovers 

The Nuggets are going to be rallied by coach Michael Malone, who has said the Suns are a very proficient offensive team the Nuggets need to contain. Denver looked like the much more energetic team, which gives it an edge over the Suns in the immediate sense.

The Nuggets led by 17 points at halftime, but the Suns did not play poorly. They shot 22-of-40 from the field and had 51 points. Denver just had a bigger effort in transition and getting up more shots, which created the distance.

The Suns had opportunities to cut into the Nuggets’ lead but could not. Denver continued to make an effort to push the pace against Phoenix, which played Booker and Durant for 40 and 36 minutes, respectively, and ran them up and down the floor in the high altitude.

The Nuggets also got efforts from their role players the Suns did not. Durant and Booker had 29 and 27 points, respectively, but did not have much outside of that.

Monty Williams has questionable rotation strategy, Landry Shamet struggles 

Phoenix entered the second round with the second-fewest bench points (72) this postseason. The Suns have capable scorers off their bench with T.J. Warren, Terrence Ross and Damion Lee, who ranked No. 2 in the NBA in 3-point percentage (44.5), but Monty Williams does not use them in favor of backup guard Landry Shamet.

Shamet averaged 11.0 bench minutes entering Saturday’s game and had 14 in Game 1. He was not good, finishing with the worst plus/minus margin off the Suns’ bench (-14).

Shamet’s insertion into the lineup is shocking. Phoenix has its leading bench scorer, Cameron Payne, available, though he did not play until the Suns pulled their starters in the fourth quarter.

The Suns will have to get huge nights from Durant and Booker to win this series. They exploded in the first round against the Los Angeles Clippers but did not look like the best duo in this game.

Murray and Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who had 24 points on 9-of-21 shooting with 19 rebounds and five assists, played very effectively in the pick-and-roll, while Durant and Booker played away from each other in isolation.

The Suns will need to show their talent through offense and overall team play to assert themselves and win this series.