As a fan of the Nuggets not in Denver, one of the main reasons that I purchased NBA League Pass was to watch the team. Now given the drastic overhaul of their head office this past offseason, I’m not sure how to feel about it. Firing the reigning Coach of the Year AND GM of the Year, the same GM of the Year who turned the Carmelo Anthony trade into getting pieces like Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, were a bit of drastic moves, considering the team had its best regular season in years.
Now, this offseason saw the Nuggets get players such as JJ Hickson, Randy Foye, and Nate Robinson as their marquee free agent acquisitions, while saying goodbye to Andre Iguodala and Corey Brewer. Let’s be fair, the Nuggets improved their 3-point shooting, a common criticism on the team last year. Foye has stuck around the league as a pure 3-point threat, while not providing much of anything else. Nate Robinson will be remembered for his ridiculous (not the good kind of ridiculous) 3-time slam dunk Championships, and his insane run last year for the Bulls. And JJ Hickson is another big man who doesn’t know how to box out and only wants the highlight plays.
The Nuggets, over a few months, went from a team of young players with so much potential, to a team that will struggle to get into the playoffs. As I write this piece, the Nuggets just dropped their 8th straight, going to 14-17, and have officially gone under .500 at home. The fact that Denver is under .500 at home is the most surprising piece of their record, given their history as a run and gun team that took full advantage of the altitude against its opponents. Now they’ve fallen into sub-par mediocrity with little room to see upside.
The team lacks any defensive presence, as JaVale McGee is out indefinitely with a torn libia, Gallinari is still recovering from a torn ACL, and the Manimal and JJ Hickson don’t know the first thing about playing defense, despite a new defensive-minded head coach in Brian Shaw. Tack that with what could be the smallest back court ever in Ty Lawson, Randy Foye, Nate Robinson, and Andre Miller (who barely plays for some strange reason), and you’ve got a whole team of defensive liabilities.
Now the whole team isn’t bad. Ty Lawson’s offensive game has gone to new heights since he’s adopted a strong 3-point shot, along with a consistent mid-range jumper. Wilson Chandler seems to score effortlessly, if only he ever took more initiative to do so, Darrell Arthur seems to be the perfect big man in Brian Shaw’s system, and their young pieces like Jordan Hamilton and Evan Fournier continue to develop nicely with playing time.
But we all know how this story ends, offensive teams never go far into the playoffs, or in this case, struggle to make the playoff picture. I’m not saying that the team is completely desolated, but changes need to be made. JaVale McGee and Danillo Gallinari cannot single handedly change the effort and culture of the team. Players like Lawson, Chandler, and Arthur are leading the charge but need more help from guys like Foye and Hickson. This includes buckling down on D and having better shot selections. These little things turn blowouts into competitive games, turn competitive games into grind ‘em out wins, and wins into clear wins.
