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Denver Nuggets 2024-25 season preview: Are Nikola Jokić and Co. fading as title contenders?

ben rohrbach
Senior writer
·5 min read
(Grant Thomas/Yahoo Sports Illustration)
(Grant Thomas/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

The 2024-25 NBA season is here! We're breaking down the biggest questions, best- and worst-case scenarios, and fantasy outlooks for all 30 teams. Enjoy!

  • Additions: Russell Westbrook, Dario Saric, DaRon Holmes II

  • Subtractions: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Reggie Jackson, Justin Holiday

  • Complete roster

Here's everything you need to know for the 2024-25 NBA season. (Henry Russell/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

The Nuggets have Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. and ... who else exactly? Do not get me wrong: That is an incredible top four — the foundation of a team that won the championship in 2023 — but the rotation around them has taken hits over the past two summers.

Bruce Brown and Jeff Green left for more money after the title run, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope did the same this past offseason. None of them is a game-breaker, necessarily, but added together they are enough to wage a war of attrition. Without Brown and Green, Denver could not extract the value it would have hoped from Christian Braun and a collection of rookies to avoid a second-round playoff exit.

Now what? Does the loss of Caldwell-Pope tug them further from contention?

Let us slow down for a moment. The Nuggets still boast Jokić, the best player alive, an offense unto himself and a walking 50-win season, so long as he stays healthy. They have Murray, whose pick-and-roll partnership with Jokić forms the most lethal offensive combination in the league. Porter is a flame-thrower from the peak of his 7-foot wingspan, while Gordon possesses untold strength and athleticism.

Throw in anyone, and that group will cause plenty of problems, as it did last season, when they outscored opponents by 14.5 points per 100 meaningful possessions without Caldwell-Pope in the lineup with them.

But are they enough to navigate the Western Conference gauntlet, much less defeat whoever emerges from the East? Certainly not if Murray still needs to get a handle on his health. He told reporters on media day that he has no limitations from the knee injury that cost him the entire 2021-22 campaign or the ailments that contributed to his poor performances in last season's playoffs and the Olympics.

Sep 26, 2024; Denver, Co, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook (4) during Denver Nuggets Media Day. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
Can Russell Westbrook give Denver's bench a boost? (Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images)

The Nuggets are always one injury away from fielding an even thinner rotation. There is one big name who joined them — former MVP turned 36-year-old journeyman Russell Westbrook — but he brings with him his own set of complications. He is the worst high-volume shooter in NBA history and a detriment to any defensive scheme. He is also an incredibly explosive playmaker in the open floor. The lot of it has led him to a single playoff series victory in the past seven seasons, despite a string of All-Star teammates.

Perhaps more important is the continued development of Braun, Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther. That was also last season's plan, when Watson and Strawther provided nothing in a second-round loss to Minnesota. It is one thing to expect Braun to contribute; he was a valuable piece of their title team. It is another to require a host of prospects to support at once.

But again: Jokić and Murray will provide the space necessary to excel, if anyone is ready to seize his role. They will create open shots, reward cutters and rescue broken-down possessions. There will be growing pains. At what heights Denver's youth stands at season's end will dictate whether this season ends like the previous season or the one before it. It is within their reach. Remember: A blown 20-point lead in Game 7 against the Timberwolves is all that stood between them and a return to the conference finals.

Denver's investment of a maximum contract for Murray is a reflection of their confidence in his health. He and Jokić barnstorm the league, and everyone else raises their game. Porter contributes more than just his shot. Braun seizes his spot as a fifth starter. Westbrook injects some ferocity into the bench. As Gordon told reporters on media day, everyone on the Nuggets should feel compelled to "[hold] up my end of the bargain." That bargain? With Jokić in his prime, he gives his team a title shot every season.

Murray cannot stay on the floor or is diminished when he is on it. We see no marked improvement from Denver's youth. Westbrook injects chaos into the bench instead. The reported rumblings that head coach Michael Malone and the front office "aren't exactly seeing eye to eye" become a distraction. The Nuggets are shown another second-round playoff exit. Ownership does not see the point to investing another $80 million into Porter through the 2026-27 season, and Denver hits a reset button around Jokić and Murray.

Rather than gush over Jokić being one of the best fantasy assets in the game, let's talk about Murray. The market doesn't seem concerned about Murray's health or lackluster performances in the 2024 playoffs and Paris Olympics. I wish I shared their optimism, but I'm fading Murray's fifth-round ADP.

Gordon is a player I've been targeting in points leagues. He's been thriving in the dunker's spot for Denver, and it's unlocked his ability to accumulate various fantasy stats through scoring, rebounding and generating assists. — Dan Titus

Jokić has averaged 53 wins a season over the past six years. That is the standard for the game's best player, and he should hit that mark again — with or without superior depth. Take the over.

East: Atlanta Hawks • Boston Celtics • Brooklyn Nets • Charlotte Hornets • Chicago Bulls • Cleveland Cavaliers • Detroit Pistons • Indiana Pacers • Miami Heat • Milwaukee Bucks • New York Knicks • Orlando Magic • Philadelphia 76ers • Toronto Raptors • Washington Wizards

West: Dallas Mavericks • Denver Nuggets • Golden State Warriors • Houston Rockets • Los Angeles Clippers • Los Angeles Lakers • Memphis Grizzlies • Minnesota Timberwolves • New Orleans Pelicans • Oklahoma City Thunder • Phoenix Suns • Portland Trail Blazers • Sacramento Kings • San Antonio Spurs • Utah Jazz