NBA Season Preview 2017-18: 20 things to watch this NBA season

OAKLAND, CA - JUNE 12: Kevin Durant #35 of the Golden State Warriors shoots a foul shot against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game Five of the 2017 NBA Finals on June 12, 2017 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Bruce Yeung/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 15: Paul Millsap /

18. Denver’s new and improved frontcourt

It didn’t take Denver Nuggets head coach Mike Malone long to recognize big men Jusuf Nurkic and Nikola Jokic were incompatible with one another. When he benched Nurkic and moved Jokic into Denver’s starting lineup in mid-December, the team’s offense took off and never looked back.

This offseason, the Nuggets found a far better stylistic fit to pair alongside Jokic in four-time All-Star Paul Millsap, who signed a three-year, $90 million contract with the team in free agency. The former Atlanta Hawks big man may be the NBA’s most under-the-radar top-20 player, but it’ll be impossible to ignore him this season when Denver begins surging up the Western Conference standings.

In Jokic and Millsap, the Nuggets now have two of the league’s best-passing bigs, which should make an already elite offense even more efficient. They’ll be damn near unguardable in transition or on pick-and-rolls, as they’re bound to scramble opponents defensively and create mismatches all over the court. While neither of them are knockdown 3-point shooters, both shot above 30 percent from deep last season, so defenses will have to respect them when they linger around the arc.

The NBA may be trending toward a small-ball revolution, but the versatile skill sets of Millsap and Jokic will confound those who have the misfortune of guarding them on any given night.

Next: 17. The Sixers have real NBA players!