Denver Nuggets 2024 NBA offseason preview: Expect the former champs to run it back

2023-24 season: 56-26

Highlight: While it’d be easy to point to Nikola Jokić winning the MVP award, the fact the Nuggets saw improvement from their young role players is a highlight in and of itself given future implications.

How it ended

With the league still in championship shuffle mode. There hasn’t been a repeat champion since the Golden State Warriors won in 2017 and ’18.

The Nuggets had a strong year, with health primarily on their side minus Jamal Murray missing 23 games. Michael Porter Jr., who’s been notorious for missing time over his career due to back issues, played in 81 games. Jokić, Aaron Gordon, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope all cracked over 70 games, which in today’s league is quite an achievement.

The Nuggets helped themselves by opening the door to their younger players and managing the minutes of their starters (only Jokić played more than 32 minutes per game), laying the foundation for how they wish to operate moving forward.

Peyton Watson, Christian Braun, and even Julian Strawther got a fair amount of burn this season, combining to play over 4,000 minutes. That type of youth investment is rarely seen from reigning champions, but the Nuggets are keenly aware of the need to maintain and nurture depth. With the Milwaukee Bucks having become a frightening example of a team that grew too old and too thin on the bench after their championship, the Nuggets are attempting to build for the future and extend their competitive window.

As such, it shouldn’t come as a surprise if the team rolls back virtually the same roster next year, with minimal changes.

That said, with Reggie Jackson now 34 and not playing any type of significant role in the postseason, the Nuggets could stand to upgrade their backup point guard spot.

Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets should remain title contenders. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)

Biggest offseason need

The aforementioned backup point guard could use some attention, but the same could be said of the backup center position, where neither Zeke Nnaji nor DeAndre Jordan is the answer. If the franchise could persuade Jonas Valančiūnas to sign cheaply, with…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/denver-nuggets-2024-nba-offseason-preview-expect-the-former-champs-to-run-it-back-031754978.html

Author : Yahoo Sports

Publish date : 2024-05-20 03:17:54

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.