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NBA Season Preview 2018-19: Every team’s biggest question

By Ben Ladner

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 16: Markelle Fultz #20 of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on during the game against the Miami Heat in Game Two of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 16, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 16: Markelle Fultz #20 of the Philadelphia 76ers looks on during the game against the Miami Heat in Game Two of Round One of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on April 16, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – FEBRUARY 27: Paul Millsap #4 of the Denver Nuggets handles the ball against the LA Clippers on February 27, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. 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 the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – FEBRUARY 27: Paul Millsap #4 of the Denver Nuggets handles the ball against the LA Clippers on February 27, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. 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 the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Denver Nuggets: How much of a difference does Paul Millsap make?

In theory, Millsap is a perfect fit on the Nuggets, who badly needed a versatile forward who could shore up their defense without compromising their spread, up-tempo style on the other end. But the partnership between Millsap, Nikola Jokić, and the rest of Denver’s young pieces never had the opportunity to flourish. Millsap missed 44 games with a wrist injury and was never truly integrated on either end of the floor.

In the 38 games Millsap did play, the possibilities of his impact were evident. The Nuggets posted a slightly below-average defensive rating with Millsap on the floor. Without him, they sunk to 25th in the NBA in points allowed per possession. He had his best 3-point shooting season since 2015 and gave Denver another reliable creator next to Jokić. The five-man unit of Millsap, Jokić, Jamal Murray, Gary Harris and Will Barton (the likely starting lineup this season) eviscerated opponents in limited minutes together.

Denver has the makings of a potentially elite offense. Jokić has been one of the best offensive players in the NBA the last two seasons, and the passing and cutting that has come to represent the Nuggets at their best aesthetically rivals any offense in the league. But the playoff race in the Western Conference will be unforgiving, and a team that can’t slow an opponent’s offense is one ill equipped for the challenge of competing in the playoffs. Millsap, even past his athletic peak, can still offer some of the defensive versatility and rim protection that Denver needs to survive out West.

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