The Nuggets miss Westbrook

[KayDee35]

If Russ's 3-point shot isn't falling the playoffs, which is a frequent occurrence, he becomes a negative as the defense can ignore him and stop the rest of the team.

The Nuggets don't need help raising their floor which is what Russ is good at. They need their ceiling raised and Russ is a mixed bag when it comes to that.

[ChuckChilly]

Bruce Brown was supposed to give them that Westbrook like enthusiasm and utility, but he's been playing very poorly, shooting worse than Westbrook, 39% FG and 28% from 3. Last time he was in Denver he was 48% and 35%. Major difference.

[Ssj16]

The nuggets don`t miss Westbrook. They miss being healthy.

If Braun und A-aron would be healthy, there would be a big chance that the nuggets would be the save 2nd spot in the West. Westbrook had his moments during last year but mainly because there simply was no depth in the roster. If they are healthy with their starting five they now have players like Timmy or Valanciunas who can give solid (not good) minutes as backups - i clear improvement.

- OKC has missed JDub and Chet.
- Lakers missing Bron, Luka, Smart and Ayton for various times
- Rockets are missing Eason and FVV
- Spurs have missed Fox, Harper and are missing Wemby

So if every other team was also healthy, no chance.

This is a weird flex after a healthy Lakers got demolished by the G-league Suns last night.

The point is, each team got worst when missing key players and if you actually know anything about the Denver team, losing their best defensive players has an outsized impact because that's where they are getting killed.

And for all this, they virtually have the same record as the Lakers, Rockets and Spurrs so once again, it's a moot point.

[Ssj16]

Bruce Brown was supposed to give them that Westbrook like enthusiasm and utility, but he's been playing very poorly, shooting worse than Westbrook, 39% FG and 28% from 3. Last time he was in Denver he was 48% and 35%. Major difference.

Bruce Brown was sick last night but I was very cautious about him being a plus player on Denver. He looked like one of those players who did not age well if you look at his time after Denver on Toronto, Indiana, etc.

[Jadoogar]

they're down 2 starters, including their swiss army knife. Most teams will struggle with 2 starters missing.

[HotRocks34]

Denver doesn't need to play at a faster pace.

Denver needs to be able to handle playing at a faster pace because that's how opponents are attacking them. And then when Denver speeds up, they crumble. It's happened multiple times this year already.

The Dallas game wasn't super fast but it was fast enough to throw the Nuggets offense off rhythm .


DEN fast break points per game last year



DEN fast break points per game this year



The issue is not only the lost 4 ppg in FBP but the failed attempted fast breaks this season that end up as bricks or turnovers that lead to opponent run-outs for easy scores. This dynamic is probably Denver's biggest problem so far this season, along with overall halfcourt defensive struggles.

Just to be clear, I'm not advocating for a Russ return. But Denver needs someone who fits the Russ profile: Up tempo, fiery and a strong passer. Competitive.

Missing Gordon and Braun hurts significantly, same for Murray, but their coming back isn't going to solve the core fast-pace issue. Denver needs a ball handler and creator who can play at pace more than they need finishers on the break like Gordon and Braun.

Murray is having a great year but he's not naturally a high-pace guy and you need someone else to help him share the burden with decision making and ball handling. Bruce is ok but not ideal IMO.

Russ is a phenomenal passer, the best passer Jokic ever played with.

Denver has apparently been exploring the idea of bringing in a backup point guard. I think that would help and I think it's getting clearer about what kind of guy might fit best in that role.

I also think that they could use an athletic big in the rotation but apparently they don't think Holmes is ready and NNaji can still be inconsistent.

[HotRocks34]

Bruce Brown was supposed to give them that Westbrook like enthusiasm and utility, but he's been playing very poorly, shooting worse than Westbrook, 39% FG and 28% from 3. Last time he was in Denver he was 48% and 35%. Major difference.

Bruce Brown was sick last night but I was very cautious about him being a plus player on Denver. He looked like one of those players who did not age well if you look at his time after Denver on Toronto, Indiana, etc.

I love Bruce but it looks like he's lost some of his athleticism. I think he had some injury issues so maybe that is the reason.

I still think Bruce is a good player but maybe not as the backup point guard and his old King Swag persona during his previous Nuggets stint may not be possible any longer physically.

Bruce, the old Bruce, is a natural fit for the fiery aspect of Russ' personality. On the other hand, Bruce is not the passer that Russ is

[dhsilv2]

A lot of this gets fixed with health. The other guy not talked about is Cam who clearly isn't 100% out there.

[Johnny Bball]

Lowry probably asks for his release this year at the deadline. I think he has enough left to fill the roll.

[tsherkin]

Lowry probably asks for his release this year at the deadline. I think he has enough left to fill the roll.

I'd expect him to retire more than to come to Denver, to be honest.

[HotRocks34]

I dissed Denver so let me praise them on this -- Spencer Jones can play. He's tough, good size, solid athlete and seems to have excellent BBIQ. I hope he gets converted to a normal contract.

[AleksandarN]

Firing Malone was a huge mistake. He was one of the best coaches in the NBA and helped lead the team to the finals.

Hope the Wizards hire him once they fire their horrible coach. He can easily turn that franchise around.

You obviously don’t follow the nuggets do you? Malone was fired for many reasons one of them he lost the locker room. He also created a toxic environment with the front office for another. He jeopardized wins because he wouldn’t play certain guys etc. Very unprofessional from him with his feud with Calvin booth that’s why he was fired along with Booth. Both of them put their egos in front of the team.

[AleksandarN]

They should've kept him if Pickett is unplayable and Brown is this washed up.

Jokic's petulance can resurface with a quickness. He was frustrated and spent clutch time standing around and chucking 3's. At home, against a poor team, Spencer F'n Jones gave you damn near 30, and Jok already put in the work for a monster statline. And yet the 4th was unserious. It kills me when he punches out of a game like this.

They badly miss AG.

Wtf says Brown is washed up??

[Castle Black]

Westbrook was a solid Regular Season minutes-eater for them, he was just unplayable in the Postseason because he can't shoot the 3 with any sort of consistency. That said, I think their biggest issue right now is that they're just not healthy. They're missing 2 starters, one of which is their 3rd best player and the other who is their best perimeter defender. They need to get healthy. Unfortunately, it doesn't sound like we'll see AD again in 2025 which really sucks for them. The load on Jokic's back is going to be heavy for awhile.

[tsherkin]

Westbrook was a solid Regular Season minutes-eater for them, he was just unplayable in the Postseason because he can't shoot the 3 with any sort of consistency.

Spacing wasn't the only issue. Dumb decisions and bad, poorly-timed turnovers were a big part of it as well.

When Good Russ showed up, he was valuable, but Bad Russ shows up eventually, and he's... really a problem. Westbrook has only one mode: full throttle, and that isn't the brightest way to play.

[mademan]

Im actually surprised more teams didnt make a play for WB. He seems like a professional who's well liked and respected in the locker room and he provides good value at what he does. He's far from a complete player, but as a bench role player making the minimum, you could do a lot worse. Crazy to me that contenders didnt make a play for him

[tsherkin]

Im actually surprised more teams didnt make a play for WB. He seems like a professional who's well liked and respected in the locker room and he provides good value at what he does. He's far from a complete player, but as a bench role player making the minimum, you could do a lot worse. Crazy to me that contenders didnt make a play for him

Basically all of his stops have showed why, to be honest.

[nomansland]

Denver doesn't need to play at a faster pace.

Denver needs to be able to handle playing at a faster pace because that's how opponents are attacking them. And then when Denver speeds up, they crumble. It's happened multiple times this year already.

The Dallas game wasn't super fast but it was fast enough to throw the Nuggets offense off rhythm .

They have the best offensive rating in the league, and that's held up even recently. The last game was a bit of an aberration but even still they're averaging 124 ppg and managed to put up 121 on Dallas, who is the 6th rated defense. Offense is really not the problem.

They can't get stops though and in the last 4 or 5 games have absolutely been torched by one or two players who manage to go off from the 3 point line. There's something wrong with their scheme because random dudes are getting left wide open. I think they're trying to keep people out of the paint- which was absolutely a problem last year- and are possibly over correcting.

[mademan]

Im actually surprised more teams didnt make a play for WB. He seems like a professional who's well liked and respected in the locker room and he provides good value at what he does. He's far from a complete player, but as a bench role player making the minimum, you could do a lot worse. Crazy to me that contenders didnt make a play for him

Basically all of his stops have showed why, to be honest.

But he doesnt need to be a prominent player on your team. Coaches dont need to play him in the clutch or put him in a position to hurt them....he provides value outside of that and he doesnt come off as a guy who'd make a stink if he played 10 or 25 minutes or was DNP-CD

[nomansland]

Missing Gordon and Braun hurts significantly, same for Murray, but their coming back isn't going to solve the core fast-pace issue. Denver needs a ball handler and creator who can play at pace more than they need finishers on the break like Gordon and Braun.

Murray is having a great year but he's not naturally a high-pace guy and you need someone else to help him share the burden with decision making and ball handling. Bruce is ok but not ideal IMO.

Russ is a phenomenal passer, the best passer Jokic ever played with.

Denver has apparently been exploring the idea of bringing in a backup point guard. I think that would help and I think it's getting clearer about what kind of guy might fit best in that role.

I also think that they could use an athletic big in the rotation but apparently they don't think Holmes is ready and NNaji can still be inconsistent.

Braun scored more points in transition than anyone last year (iirc, if not he was way up there), so he does somewhat address the pace issue, assuming it's an issue. And Gordon brings the ball up pretty well for a big.

Anyway to be clear I'm not making excuses since everyone is missing players. The Nuggets need to be better, particularly on defense. Having those guys back will help, but there's enough talent on the team to play on both ends now.

I'm on the fence about needing another ball handler. Yeah having another one would be great but on the other hand they only have 1 roster spot left and Jones is doing his best to earn it. They're going to have to decide if they can survive with Brown and a Murray stagger or keep Jones as a 2-way player and have him miss the playoffs. Not an easy call, but they also have some time to figure it out.