Tragic stat explains why the Denver Nuggets might be doomed this year

Despite headlining the Denver Nuggets' offseason additions, many were skeptical about Russell Westbrook's fit with the team. Furthermore, there was plenty of doubt about whether he would contribute to winning basketball at this stage in his career. However, no one could've predicted it to be this bad.

Westbrook has been under disaster early in his Nuggets tenure. Tasked with leading Denver's second unit, he's struggled mightily. Not only are his woes glaring, but they're taking a toll on the rest of the squad. Specifically when superstar center Nikola Jokic is on the bench, everyone around the veteran point guard plunges.

As Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor highlights, Denver's offense becomes anemic when Westbrook is part of the lineup and Jokic isn't. For reference, the NBA's average offensive rating this season is 115.3. So, the Nuggets are operating at nearly half that rate in the mentioned situation -- yeesh.

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Tragic stat accentuates Russell Westbrook singlehandedly plummeting the Denver Nuggets' offense

If the 22-minute sample size with Westbrook and sans Jokic is any indication, the Nuggets could be headed for a disappointing 2024-25 campaign. While the latter is widely regarded as the best player in the world, Denver is too reliant on him being great nightly. And when they aren't, the former is only making things more difficult.

Non-Jokic minutes have always been a patchwork job for Denver throughout his career. The Nuggets hope to merely tread water without their two-time MVP on the floor, though Westbrook is downright sinking them. However, the Serbian actively vouched for and recruited the future Hall of Famer this past summer, making this a fault of his doing.

Westbrook has averaged 5.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game through his first three contests with the Nuggets. Nonetheless, he's been wildly ineffective as a scorer, demonstrated by his paltry .200/.100/.600 shooting splits.

Notably, it's extremely early in the year. But if you're a Nuggets fan, it's hard to feel good about the current state of the group behind Jokic. Knowing Westbrook runs the show when the big man is riding the pine makes it especially challenging, given what we've seen thus far.