When Nikola Jokic led the Denver Nuggets to their first-ever NBA championship in the 2022-23 season, it was perceived to be the rise of a new dynasty. However, the very next season, they looked nothing like a champion side. Without any major upgrades in the 2024 offseason, their prospects of winning another NBA championship this season look bleak
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Interestingly, the Nuggets won 57 games last season (2nd in the Western Conference) compared to 53 during their championship campaign. However, their postseason performance was bizarre, to say the least.
They defeated the Lakers convincingly in five games in the first round. But the performance was iffy. They conceded big early leads in each of the games. This became a major issue in the second round as the Minnesota Timberwolves carved out a 3-0 advantage. The Nuggets made a desperate comeback on the back of Jokic’s amazing play to tie the series, but they lost Game 7 to exit the fray.
One huge reason for the underwhelming result was how Jamal Murray performed. He put up 20.6 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game on 40.2% shooting during the postseason. These numbers aren’t shabby. However, they do not paint the full picture. He had a poor 3/18 shooting night in Game 2 and a 4/18 shooting night in Game 6 against the Timberwolves.
Murray’s dip in form provided the Wolves a match-up advantage at the guard position. They easily fended off the desperate Nuggets. His downward spiral continued during the 2024 Olympics as he tallied merely 5.7 PPG, shooting a terrible 10% from the three-point line.
In the preseason games, he has contributed just 5.3 PPG, making just 20% of his total three-point attempts. His three-point shooting has been a tremendous concern and if he continues in this same form, it will spell trouble for the Nuggets. Apart from Jokic and Michael Porter Jr., they lack reliable floor-stretching options at times.
Putting aside Murray’s concerning form, the team lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Orlando Magic. KCP was vital for his former team as he guarded the opposing team’s best perimeter player and also hit the three-point ball at a consistent rate. Last season, he made 1.6 triples a game on an above-average 40.6% clip.
6’6” guard Christian Braun who will enter his third season is going to replace Caldwell-Pope in the starting lineup. While he has terrific size, he may not have the foot speed to keep up with shifty guards in the League. Additionally, he has yet to become a high-volume long-range threat. His development will also play a key role in defining the Nuggets’ trajectory going forward.
Thus, the off-guard position for the team has been downgraded considerably. Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook is another key rotation player at the guard position who will probably take up the sixth-man role for the squad.
Westbrook has declined significantly and during the 2024 postseason, he put up only 6.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game. Additionally, he shot a terrible 26% from the field and 23.5% from deep.
Thus, he is not the answer to fix the team’s long-range shooting woes either. Apart from that, his game in other areas has also suffered massively and his unpredictable play may only worsen the Nuggets’ problems. But this is just the beginning of the team’s bench issues.
There is no doubt that they have one of the worst, if not the worst, benches in the league. Guards Julian Strawther and Hunter Tyson will enter their sophomore year and were a non-factor last season.
Meanwhile, third-year forward Peyton Watson is also a work in progress. Forward-center Dario Saric is at best a bench player and there is no doubt that the team will have to rely on previously unproved bench warmers to provide major contributions. Apart from that, veteran center Deandre Jordan is in the twilight of his career.
This appalling lack of depth curbs their capacity to make a big splash in the Western Conference. The Minnesota Timberwolves, Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City Thunder, and even the Sacramento Kings look deeper than them in all aspects. But there is a big reason the team hasn’t added depth to keep up with the evolving Western Conference. They haven’t been able to.
The new Collective Bargaining Agreement has hit them hard
The Nuggets are paying Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, and Michael Porter Jr. a combined sum of around $145 million next season. This means they are exceeding the salary cap of approximately $140.88 million with just 4 players. Overall, the Nuggets currently have total cap allocations of $194.68 million, which puts them above the second apron.
When a team gets above the dreadful second apron, they can’t sign anyone to a mid-level exception contract, can’t lump contracts in trades, can’t send cash in trades, can’t add new players by signing and trading their free agents, and are heavily restricted in utilizing their first-round picks.
These factors have contributed to the Nuggets’ lack of depth for the upcoming 2024-25 season. While Jokic is arguably the NBA’s best player, the Nuggets lack the ammo to battle in the deep Western Conference. Jamal Murray’s struggles amplify this issue.
Their chances of bringing a second title in three years look dim. Instead of upgrading their roster, they are set to duke it out with a thinned-out squad which doesn’t bode well.
