NBA Season Preview 2019-20: The one reason to watch each and every team

Denver Nuggets: Proving it wasn’t a fluke

Michael Porter Jr. is a close second, but he’s not the biggest reason you should tune in to watch the 2019-20 Denver Nuggets. No, the real reason is to observe a young team trying to take the next step from “pleasant regular season surprise” and “certified playoff squad” to “postseason mainstay” and “legitimate title contender.”

Despite sporting a seven-foot dad bod, Nikola Jokic is a top MVP contender, just as he was last year. Jamal Murray is *this* close to breaking out as one of the NBA’s most unstoppable scorers. Gary Harris will look to bounce back after an injury-stained year. Paul Millsap is still very good. Jerami Grant will plug up some holes in the rotation. The Will Barton Experience is still a thing.

This inexperienced roster won 54 games and earned the 2-seed in the West last year. It remains largely the same as last year, meaning continuity and internal growth are on Denver’s side. Watching this group try to build on last year’s success and take the next logical step of their gradual ascent will be riveting to watch, even if their genetic makeup is largely the same.

The Nuggets weren’t taken seriously as actual threats to compete for a championship last year, which was reinforced by how a second-round playoff exit didn’t even sully the perception that they had a successful season overall. This time around, the conference finals and maybe even the NBA Finals should be the goal, and watching these youngsters undergo those trials by fire should make for entertaining television.