Rebuild and Retain: Denver Nuggets
There are several young, intriguing teams that grab a lot of attention from around the league. Minnesota has a dynamic duo to build around in Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, the Bucks have interesting young players like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker, and the 76ers continue to be a mess on their journey to relevancy.
Another team the league needs to take notice of is the Denver Nuggets.
Denver’s path to this point didn’t come in the way they intended. After being one of the elite teams in the Western Conference in 2012-13, the Nuggets fell off the map in the following season. Injuries and the departure of Andre Iguodala to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors made the Nuggets fall flat and miss the playoffs just a year after being the third best team in the West.
The Nuggets probably held on to a few of their veterans for too long, but the patience may have paid off with some of their timely deals. With that, the Nuggets have amassed a treasure chest of young players and future first round picks that rank up there with some of the best asset collections in the league. With how well general manager Tim Connelly and his staff have drafted in recent years, the Nuggets have put themselves in a nice position to develop young players and possibly strike on a deal for a superstar.
R&R Series: Bucks | Suns | 76ers | Nets | Timberwolves | Pelicans | Lakers
The Nuggets are next in this Rebuild and Retain series going through each NBA team not considered a title contender and assessing the young players they have on their roster. Player development is key in building a championship contender, and this series looks at whether or not the young players these teams have will help them reach that level in the future. The Nuggets have plenty of young talent that are making the future look bright in Denver.
Note: Only players on their rookie contracts will be considered for this series. If a team has signed a player to a second contract, that more than likely means that they are considered a core member of the roster.
ROOKIES
Emmanuel Mudiay
Mudiay’s path to the NBA was unconventional. After playing his high school basketball at Prime Prep in Texas, Mudiay committed to Southern Methodist to play his one year of college basketball. Due to some possible ineligibility issues, Mudiay decided to play overseas in China for one year before entering the NBA Draft, where he was selected No. 7 by the Nuggets.
Mudiay has been a mixed bag so far in his rookie season, with lots of good and bad to takeaway. His 11.5 points and 5.8 assists per game are impressive for a rookie, but his 34.2 percent shooting and 3.6 turnovers per game leaves much to be desired. His struggles, however, point more to the growing pains that come with being a rookie point guard than his actual skill set.
It can be difficult, with the increased pace of the game and more complicated defenses, to learn how to read the floor and where the help is coming from in the NBA. Mudiay has improved over the course of the season, something you would hope to see from a rookie lead guard. His big frame for a point guard helps him see and make passes that are difficult for most of his peers.
Last second reads in the pick and roll are essential for point guards to make, and Mudiay is becoming more and more comfortable doing so. In this clip, Jameer Nelson’s man helps down late and Mudiay gives him a pin point pass from an awkward angle for an open 3-pointer.
Mudiay is a relentless attacker, both in transition and in the pick and roll. His first instinct is always to drive to the rim. He finishes well through contact and isn’t afraid of anybody waiting for him at the rim.
Defensively, he already does some savvy things, and Mudiay’s length is going to be a problem for opposing point guards. He likes to let opponents drive into him while he swipes at the ball for a block.
Mudiay will always be hindered by his inability to shoot. His mechanics have improved over the course of the season, and that may be coming with the rest of his game as he gets more comfortable and relaxed being an everyday NBA point guard. All in all, Mudiay’s feel for the game and learning curve have him well on his way to being a franchise guy.
Nikola Jokic
Jokic was a second round pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. After spending a year overseas, Jokic finally came over to play for Denver this season. He has been one of the most surprising rookies this year, averaging 9.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while posting a 21.95 PER.
Jokic isn’t the type of center that the modern NBA demands — he isn’t an athletic lob dunking machine who blocks shots on the other end. What he is, however, is an extremely skilled big man who brings a lot to the table. Even if he isn’t a vicious rim roller, he is still great at wading into the open space in the pick and roll and off cuts. Once he catches the ball, he is a master at the mid range jumper and has consistently flashed a floater when he puts it on the deck.
His release is slow, but he is already an excellent shooter, both from mid range and from the perimeter. He has converted 39.5 percent of his 3-pointers and 52.9 percent of his attempts from 8-16 feet this season. Jokic’s floor spacing might be the reason for him being inserted in the starting lineup, too. Since Mudiay returned from injury, he and Jokic are posting a net rating of 2.4 points per 100 possessions when they share the floor together, the best combination that Mudiay has with anybody.
Jokic is a good post up player, shooting a flaming 63.6 percent on the low block. He does his work and gets position early so that he doesn’t have to waste time feeling out his man — he just catches the ball and goes. Most of his moves involve an array of spins that constantly keeps his man guessing. The other thing he does well is pass out of the post. (Jokic passes out of the post the 8th most of any other big in the league.) He is such a smart player who knows how to read the floor.
As the speed of the NBA quickens each year, players need to be able to read the floor fast. Watch Jokic catch the ball at the elbow and immediately go into the next read, which happens to be a nice backdoor pass for a layup.
Jokic might always have limitations on defense given his slow footed nature, but Mike Malone’s defensive scheme is conservative and hides big men well by dropping them back in ball screens. Given how well Mudiay and Jokic play off of each other on offense, there is a bright future ahead for the Nuggets with their two rookies.
SOPHOMORES
Jusuf Nurkic
Nurkic was one of two first round picks that the Nuggets got from the Chicago Bulls in a draft day trade in 2014. After having a solid rookie season, Nurkic was injured and had to sit out a large chunk of this season due to surgery in the summer. That has probably been a large reason why Nurkic’s numbers have stagnated, not improving at all from last year. In just 19 games, Nurkic is averaging 6.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game and shooting a horrendous 35.8 percent from the floor.
Nurkic’s main skill is that he can be a post up nightmare for the opposition. His combination of strength, craftiness, and quick finishes are tough to guard. He can even push around the biggest centers in the league.
The other thing that Nurkic has the potential to be good at is moving his feet and sticking with perimeter players. When he is dialed in and giving effort, Nurkic uses his nimble feet and good instincts to stick with guards off the dribble.
The problem for the Nuggets becomes which player between Jokic and Nurkic they want to commit to as their starting center long term. This isn’t a decision that needs to be rushed by any means, but their rookie deals will be up before you know it and they are going to be due extensions a year apart from each other. Nurkic doesn’t look like he has the type of polish on his game that Jokic has, and that might be the choice the Nuggets go with down the road.
Gary Harris
Harris was the other guy the Nuggets drafted with the picks they got from the Bulls in 2014. After struggling to crack the rotation in his rookie year under Brian Shaw, Harris has flourished under head coach Mike Malone. He has started in every game he has played, averaging 31.5 minutes per contest. His scoring average is up to 11.2 points per game on 46.3 percent shooting and a respectable 35.2 percent from deep.
Harris is constantly moving around the floor with and without the ball. He is relentless attacking, whether off the catch or in the pick and roll, and is always looking for pathways to get to the rim.
Harris is excellent at cutting off the ball. He knows how to move within the flow of an offense and sneak into the cracks of a defense.
Harris is most exciting as a potential “3-and-D” wing that NBA teams covet. His shooting numbers haven’t shown it yet, but his form and footwork are picture perfect. He always has his feet set and squared towards the basket, even when he is shooting off the dribble. On defense, his quickness and work ethic make him a pest on and off the ball. Harris is on track to be a better version of Avery Bradley — an elite defender who can hit shots off the catch and off the dribble.
Where Harris can be even better is his ball handling in the pick and roll and his decision making in the flow of an offense. If he develops those things, he could end up being one of the better wings in the league.
Joffrey Lauvergne
How Lauvergne got to the NBA was pretty unique. After being acquired as a second round pick, Lauvergne didn’t come to America until right after the trade deadline last season, only giving him a few months to play with the Nuggets as a rookie. He has settled nicely as a backup big man on this Nuggets team, though, averaging 7.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game in 17.4 minutes.
Lauvergne is the type of glue guy every team needs from the big position. He is sneaky athletic and has a longer wingspan than you would think. He uses those things to his advantage when manoeuvring in space on the pick and roll.
Lauvergne runs the floor really hard, something that is attractive for big men and can lead to easy buckets in transition.
Lauvergne brings so many other skills to the game — he can pass, he is crafty in the post, he can handle the ball well. Lauvergne is shooting 36.1 percent from 3-point range, but his 86.1 percent shooting from the free throw line shows that there may be even more room for growth. If he can get just a little better at knocking down shots from deep, he could become the type of multi-tooled big man that you can slot in just about any sort of lineup.
Patience is a Virtue
The Nuggets don’t have to rush any decisions with their young players. No matter what their ceilings end up being, each one of these guys should play a big part in the future of the franchise. The Nuggets have found themselves in a similar situation to the Utah Jazz a few years ago — they have plenty of young guys to give minutes to and see how they can grow together.
The thing the Nuggets have that the Jazz didn’t is a war chest of first round picks in the future they could use to either draft more studs or trade for one. After a few years of being in the lottery, Tim Connelly has put them in a position to be relevant in the coming seasons.