The Nuggets can still climb back toward the top of the West, but that jump is going to require more than just the usual Nikola Jokic-heavy machinery. Denver won 54 games last season even while dealing with injuries and a rotation that never quite settled under head coach David Adelman. The first-round loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves stung, but it doesn’t define what this team can be next.
What does matter now is whether a few key players can take real steps forward. If they do, Denver’s ceiling changes fast.
Christian Braun sits at the center of that conversation. He’s entering the first year of his five-year, $125 million extension after a season that left plenty of Nuggets fans annoyed.
Even a return to his 2024-25 level would count as a meaningful bounce-back. That year, Braun put up 15.4 points per game on 58.0% shooting and hit 39.7% from deep.
He also brought more on defense, averaging 1.1 steals and showing he could bother opponents on the perimeter.
Last season told a different story. The ankle injuries slowed him down, stripped away his burst, and kept him from looking like the same player.
His drives lost pop, the transition game mostly disappeared, and the rhythm just wasn’t there. If he gets back to full strength, Denver has a real chance to view that contract as something closer to a mild overpay than the massive one fans see right now.
Julian Strawther is another swing piece, and maybe the most obvious candidate to absorb a bigger role after Tim Hardaway Jr. moved on. Hardaway was one of the league’s best bench scorers last season, so the job Strawther is stepping into matters.
The good news for Denver is that Strawther already showed he can handle real minutes when called on. In 14 starts and 26.5 minutes a night, he averaged 14.8 points while shooting 48.4% from the field and 38.5% from three.
That was more scoring than Christian Braun or Cameron Johnson last season.
The concern is defense, and that part of his game still needs work. If Strawther can bring more resistance on the perimeter in 2026-27, he’s set up for a bigger leap in the backup shooting guard role.
He already has the ability to attack downhill and finish at the rim, which gives him something a little different. If he gives Denver Hardaway-level shooting with more driving punch, that’s a real upgrade.
Then there’s Marvin Bagley III, the veteran minimum addition with the kind of upside that always makes teams take a closer look. He’s still only 27 and was the No. 2 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, so there’s some pedigree here.
The Nuggets don’t need him to become a star; they need him to be useful in the right spots. If they can tap into his upside and keep developing his three-point shot, there’s something there.
He attempted just 0.9 threes per game, but he hit 46.2% of them in 2025-26.
Bagley’s value is tied to versatility. He can back up both Nikola Jokic and Aaron Gordon, and that could even help Gordon get more rest.
He rebounds well, shot 61.8% last season, finishes around the basket, and brings more athleticism than Jonas Valanciunas in the same role. He can get to the rim, and he offers more paint defense, too.
If those three players level up, Denver’s season starts looking a lot different. The Nuggets already showed they can win 54 games. The question is whether Braun, Strawther, and Bagley can give them enough extra juice to push higher.
In Other News...
Nuggets Fans Have Every Reason To Worry About Denvers Cap Crunch
Denvers roster math is getting harder to ignore, and Peyton Watsons departure only sharpens the concern. The Nuggets were already navigating a tight salary picture, with contract commitments piling up around a core that still has to be built out if the team wants to stay competitive in the West. Losing a young piece like Watson leaves another empty spot to fill, and it comes at a time when every move seems tied to the same financial squeeze.
Christian Brauns long-term extension has only added to the pressure on Denvers front office, especially as questions linger about whether the price tag will match the production going forward. For a team trying to balance present expectations with future flexibility, that kind of commitment matters. The Nuggets now have less room to maneuver, and the next roster decision could say a lot about how much risk they are willing to take to keep this group intact. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Just Got Pulled Into A Move With Bigger NBA Stakes
Peyton Watson is on the move, and the ripple effects of the five-team trade that sent him from Denver to Cleveland could reach well beyond the original deal. The Nuggets were part of a sprawling transaction involving multiple draft picks and player movement, a reminder that summer roster work can still reshape both present depth and future flexibility in one sweep.
Now the bigger question around Denver is what comes next, especially with DeMar DeRozan suddenly on the free-agent market after being waived by Sacramento. The six-time All-Star would give Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray another polished scorer to lean on, and for a Nuggets team still searching for the right balance around its stars, the timing makes the possibility more than just a footnote. [Read more 🡒]
David Adelmans Bench Decisions Could Make Or Break Denvers Depth
With the Nuggets roster turning over around him, David Adelman is being asked to solve one of the trickiest parts of coaching in the NBA: keeping the floor steady when the starters sit. Denver lost key rotation pieces and now has to fold in younger, less experienced options, including rookie Alpha Diallo and second-round pick Trevon Brazile, while Tyus Jones is penciled in as the backup point guard. For a team that expects to play deep into the spring, those non-star minutes can matter as much as any late-game possession.
Adelmans task is less about simply finding bodies and more about finding the right pairings, especially on a bench that has to hold up defensively without giving away too much offense. The Nuggets will also lean on assistant coach Dave Joerger to help build out the second unit, giving Denver a little more structure as the rotation takes shape. The early read on how those combinations work could go a long way toward determining whether the Nuggets depth becomes a strength or a concern. [Read more 🡒]