1 week Ago By Luke Adams, Hoops Rumors
After winning the first championship in franchise history a year ago, the Nuggets kept their starting five intact but lost a pair of reserves who played key roles during that title run. While Bruce Brown and Jeff Green were the first two players off the bench for Denver in last year’s postseason, the Nuggets weren’t in position to compete with Indiana’s offer for Brown — which included a $22M starting salary — or the Rockets’ bid for Green (an $8M starting salary, plus incentives). The Nuggets’ plan to address those holes in their rotation centered on youth.
In addition to drafting three experienced prospects who had a combined 13 college seasons under their belts ( Julian Strawther , Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson ), Denver figured second-year players Christian Braun and Peyton Watson would be ready to take on larger roles, as would fourth-year big man Zeke Nnaji . The Nuggets’ plan wasn’t entirely misguided — Braun, in particular, had a a strong sophomore season, earning head coach Michael Malone‘s trust and a spot in Denver’s playoff rotation. But Watson was up and down, Nnaji’s playing time dropped to just 9.
9 minutes per game, and the three rookies weren’t as NBA-ready as the front office had hoped. By the time the Nuggets were eliminated from the playoffs, there were only really six players (the starters, plus Braun) Malone felt like he could count on, with even veteran reserves like Justin Holiday and Reggie Jackson seeing very limited minut.
