30 Teams in 30 Days: Denver Nuggets

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Offseason
Last season
The difficulty of repeating in the luxury tax era once again claimed another victim when the Nuggets tapped out in the Western Conference semifinals. Suffering from the loss of key bench players, the Nuggets had no answer when one or more members of their starting five needed relief or fell into a slump.
In particular, Jamal Murray looked shaky in the last two months of 2023-24 (save for his epic game-winner in the playoffs against the Lakers) and Michael Porter Jr. disappeared in the semis. The Nuggets spent much of the season flirting with the top seed, yet in the end, a third Kia MVP trophy for Nikola Jokic wasn’t enough to rescue the former champs.
Summer summary
A reluctance to cope with the second tax apron put handcuffs on the Nuggets this offseason. Therefore, when Caldwell-Pope came looking for a raise, Denver essentially told him to get it elsewhere — which he did, going to Orlando. In a second straight summer, the Nuggets saw a crucial part of the rotation leave, with Caldwell-Pope following Bruce Brown.
Westbrook was signed on the cheap and could help the bench, but Holmes was lost for his rookie season after Achilles surgery. The next order of business lies with Murray’s contract situation, which was unsettled for much of the summer. Murray, eligible for an extension (four years, $208 million) as he approaches the final year of his current deal, reportedly agreed to terms with Denver on Saturday.
Spotlight on
Christian Braun needs to tell the Nuggets who he is. Losing key rotational players isn’t painful if others are ready to step up and assume those roles. In that sense, the former first-round pick (along with Julian Strawther) has his opportunity, once again, to show his worth. Last season, the production was just OK. This time, either he improves or the Nuggets fall a bit further behind the other contenders.
How far can the Nuggets go?
In a league where MVP-quality players automatically make their team contenders, the Nuggets do have that going for them with Jokic. He’s so skilled and impactful that he can compensate when teammates are slumping. It also helps that Jokic has never had a serious injury. So let’s assume “Joker” will be “Joker.”
Therefore, the Nuggets can go as far as Murray takes them. This would be the right time for him to finally be an All-Star and leave behind any doubts raised by his poor second half to last season (along with uninspired play in the Olympics). A 50-win season is reasonable. Another trip to the Finals? Not if the competition is hungrier and has bypassed them.
Up next: Minnesota Timberwolves | Previously: Oklahoma City Thunder
30 Teams in 30 Days: Complete schedule
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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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