DENVER -- With Denver's young star off his game, the newcomer did his best Nikola Jokic impersonation.

It worked out well for the Nuggets.

Mason Plumlee stepped in for the struggling Jokic and finished two assists shy of a triple-double, Gary Harris scored a career-high 25 points and the Nuggets beat the Brooklyn Nets 129-109 on Friday night.

Plumlee finished with 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists to help Denver win for the first time in his three games since joining the team in a Feb. 12 trade with Portland.

"He was unbelievable tonight," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "This is the Mason Plumlee we envisioned."

Wilson Chandler scored 24 points and Danilo Gallinari had 20 points and eight rebounds for Denver, which snapped a six-game losing streak against Brooklyn.

Brook Lopez had 17 points and Trevor Booker totaled 15 points and nine rebounds for the Nets, who have lost 15 straight.

Nets guard Jeremy Lin played 15 minutes and had seven points and five assists in his return from a strained left hamstring. Lin missed the previous 26 games, but his return wasn't enough to stop Brooklyn's losing streak.

"I felt extremely slow, especially on the defensive end," said Lin, who played his first game since Dec. 26. "In that third quarter, really all game, I felt like I couldn't move at the speed I wanted to, which kind of showed itself defensively.

"I didn't get hurt again. It's going to be ugly at times, but slowly getting my rhythm back. The frustrating part as a competitor is not being able to put the imprint on the game that I want to, but it will come.”

The Nets (9-48) last lost to Denver on Dec. 3, 2013, in their first season in Brooklyn. Until Friday they dominated the series, winning both games last season with buzzer-beaters.

The Nuggets (26-32) didn't let it get down to that Friday. They led by 15 in the first half and, after Lopez opened the third quarter with a 3-pointer, went on a 15-5 run to go up 79-61.

"We knew we had to come out and be aggressive in the third quarter," Harris said. "We had the lead at the half and we just kind of had to step on their necks and not let them back in the game. That's what we did."

The lead grew to 27 points late in the third quarter and to as much as 32 in the fourth.

"I don't think our energy level was where it needed to be, I don't think our execution was where it needed to be, I don't think our effort on the boards was good enough," Brooklyn coach Kenny Atkinson said. "We definitely didn't defend the 3-point line."

The Nuggets won despite an off night from Jokic. The catalyst of Denver's offensive revival, he picked up two fouls in the first two minutes and was on the bench for most of the first half. He had more turnovers (three) than points at halftime.

Jokic has acknowledged that he is feeling fatigued. He has seen action in 51 of Denver's 59 games after playing for Serbia at the Rio Olympics last summer.

He didn't get time off at the All-Star break, competing in the Rising Stars Game and Skills Challenge in New Orleans.

The grind of all that basketball showed Friday. He made his only field goal attempt of the game and finished with just two points, although he did have seven assists in 14 minutes.

His teammates were happy to step up, particularly Plumlee. He picked up his eighth assist on Harris' fourth and final 3-pointer midway through the fourth quarter but couldn't get another before sitting with 2:31 left.

"Before I went in the last time, somebody told me to go get a couple of assists," Plumlee said. "I was trying, just didn't come through."

NOTES: Nuggets F Kenneth Faried (back spasms) left in the third quarter and did not return. ... Brooklyn C Brook Lopez stepped up to help a young fan make a basket during the timeout after the first quarter. The toddler was being held up to lay the ball in but couldn't get it over the rim. Lopez came over, lifted him higher and he put it in the bucket. ... Nuggets C Roy Hibbert, acquired from Milwaukee on Thursday, was not expected to arrive in Denver until late Friday night. ... Nets F K.J. McDaniels was not active. Brooklyn acquired McDaniels from Houston on Thursday.