Denver Nuggets Team Review

 

2024-25 Finish: 51-31

 

Season Highlight:

The Nuggets have been a picture of consistency during their time in the league with little ground shaking action going on and yet they keep pumping out 50+ win seasons. This year was no different even though it was their first full year sans Steph Curry. The Mitchell Era fully began and they didn’t miss a beat, going straight back to their 50+ ways and that’s got to make you feel good knowing you prolonged your window with a younger version and didn’t go backwards at all. Couple that with the growth of JJ (even before he was injured) and the team is in a great place.

 

Season Lowlight:

Despite the team going for 51 wins, they never truly got to see what they could have been capable of if they had the depth and versatility to be able to shift line ups and really try and combat that horrific Spurs match up in Round 1. Jalen Johnson was ruled out during the season leaving them struggling for size and PF options and they really had to just roll mostly down the stretch. A 0-4 sweep in Round 1 is not how you want to end your season.

 

Best Trade:

Nuggets get: 35 GM Points
Nuggets send: Denver 2026 2^nd Round Pick

Fascinatingly the Nuggets didn’t make a single personnel trade all year which leaves us assessing this kind of nothing. 35 GMs for a 2^nd is good business…but that’s the best trade they did?

 

Worst Trade:

Nuggets get: 30 GM Points
Nuggets send: LA Clippers 2027 2^nd Round Pick

Yes we’re really doing this. The worst trade is that they got 5 less GM points for a 2^nd than they did for the other one. Hey, that’s worse, isn’t it?

 

Other Notable Trades:

No other trades.

 

Free Agency:

The Nuggets again this year have a really key piece that is expiring. After winning the Chris Paul sweepstakes last year, he’s expiring and has signed elsewhere for no resign bonus leaving him as a very likely departure after having a prominent role last year. There’s no need to go get back a Klay this year, though, and CP3 is on minimum which is more tantalising than what he was paid last year. The only other free agent is Bones Hyland, and he’s an RFA so is coming on back!

Chris Paul – UFA, no resign bonus and a lot of interest around the league for quality vets. He’s going to be hard to keep!

Bones Hyland – RFA, auto return, so no need to look here.

 

 

Star:

Donovan Mitchell

This is Donovan Mitchell’s team now and he tuned up the opposition for 29 points a game last year with an added 4 assists a game. It’s not Curry numbers, but he led the team and got others involved and allowed for the growth on the offensive side of the ball from MPJ to help him also. He’s the star of this team and everyone knows it.

 

Flop:

Jalen Johnson

This is just about as harsh as me calling out Sabonis a couple of years ago, and I could nearly have called him out again here too. But, Johnson signs a massive extension and then promptly averages 7 points and 7 rebounds before going down with a season ending injury. He’s young and will bounce back, but that was a flop and a half after the excitement was building around this exciting young kid ready to explode onto the scene. Will it be this year?

 

 

Draft Grades:

No Picks. No Draft. Draft isn’t the most active time for the Nuggets, even though they love picking out a prospect and are often good at it, but this year there were no picks in the cupboard and they didn’t need to think.

 

The Future:

The Nuggets future is undoubtedly better off since the Curry trade. Not cause Curry isn’t still elite and playing at that high level, but because Steph can only have so many years left and Mitchell is in his prime. Unfortunately Klay is looking like a heavy recede this year which is a little unexpected to be such a drop off so quick, now that he’s healthy, but maybe he’ll bounce back and we likely won’t see that in 2k/NSL til after his contract expires anyway. With JJ back, MPJ growth and in a new team in the NBA, and Sabonis still around, they have a stable of big talented guys next to Mitchell/Klay and a nice bunch of young role players to fill in the roster, too. The future is strong as they are one of the teams that still hold a 1^st in every year going forward and they have a nice balance of veteran and youth on the roster as we speak.

  C: Domantus Sabonis / Neemias Queta / Nick Richards
  PF: Jalen Johnson / __________
  SF: Michael Porter Jnr. / Max Christie
  SG: Klay Thompson / Keon Johnson
  PG: Donovan Mitchell / Isaiah Collier / Bones Hyland