Everybody knows the contenders for the Finals this year. The Milwaukee Bucks are the class of the East. The Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers look like the teams to beat in the West. There is one team in the West that could be a sleeper pick to go to the Finals. The Denver Nuggets are one of the best teams in the league this year and they will cause problems for teams in the playoffs. This team has shown that they are resilient. They were able to come back from a 19 point deficit to win the game in overtime against the Golden State Warriors on Jan. 16.
Last year they were booted out of the Western Conference semifinals by the Portland Trail Blazers in seven games. That game seven loss has motivated this team to do better this season. The Denver Nuggets are a good team and they could cause fits for teams this year in the playoffs.
Denver Nuggets Could Cause Trouble for Teams in the Playoffs
Great Players Make a Team Great
The Denver Nuggets have a balanced attack. This team doesn’t have any elite scorers as many of the great teams in the league have but they have a top ten offense. Denver is seventh in offensive rating with 111.2. They also have a good defense as they are 11th in defensive rating with 107.0. The Nuggets are the definition of team basketball because no one on the team averages more than 20 points per game. They are third in the league in assists per game with an average of 26.3. They play together on both sides of the ball and that leads to wins.
Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray are the team’s two leading scorers. Jokic is one of the new style of centers in this league. He has the ability to put the ball on the floor, pass, shoot threes, and rebound. He is almost averaging a double-double with 19.2 points per game and 9.9 rebounds per game. His 6.4 assists per game are the most for centers in the NBA. Jamal Murray is the second-leading scorer on the team with 17.6 points per game. He is a feisty point guard that is not scared of any of the great point guards in the league.
The Nuggets have a rising star in Michael Porter Jr. He missed the 2018-19 campaign with a back injury but he is starting to come on for this team. In his past three games, he is averaging 16.6 points per game. In his second year, he is showing flashes of greatness. If the Nuggets can get a third option that would be even more beneficial to them.
Denver has players like Will Barton (15.1 points per game), Malik Beasley (7.3 points per game), Gary Harris (11.1 points per game) and Paul Millsap (11.9 points per game) that make this a deep team.
Winning a Championship
The goal for the Nuggets this season is simple. They have to win a championship. This team has all the ingredients to win right now. They have a great offense and great defense. They are also a very deep team. In the playoffs, though they will go up against teams with the best players in the league like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, and Paul George.
They will have to be ready. There have been underdog teams that resemble them that have won championships even though they didn’t have the star power that opposing teams did.
Like the 2010-11 Dallas Mavericks, the Nuggets have a great big man, a tough point guard and several role players to provide offense. They were able to beat the Miami Heat who had three superstars on their team. Anything can happen in a seven-game series if your team gets hot. So far, Denver is second place in the West and they do not want a repeat of last year. Look for this team to be a major problem in the playoffs.
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