The Nuggets’ early-season injury mess has left David Adelman juggling pieces, but the cleanest fix might be hiding in plain sight: move DeMar DeRozan into the backup point guard role and push Tyus Jones further down the bench.
Cameron Johnson is back after missing three games with an ankle injury, but Denver is still waiting on three other rotation pieces to return. Julian Strawther won’t be back until sometime in December at the earliest after a knee sprain in the Nuggets’ fourth preseason game, while Spencer Jones and Alpha Diallo are expected back soon and should factor into Adelman’s rotation. With rookie second-round defensive standout Trevon Brazile already forcing his way into the mix, the Nuggets could soon be looking at an 11-man rotation - one more than Adelman typically wants to use.
That’s where the Tyus Jones question gets unavoidable. Denver needs to create room, and the easiest way to do it is to ease Tyus out of the second-unit lead guard job.
The case starts with how rough the Tyus-DeRozan pairing has been. Together, they’ve been a mess on both ends, posting a minus-20.8 points per 100 possessions net rating.
When Tyus is out there without DeRozan, the offense has managed just a 91.5 rating. Without Tyus on the floor, that number jumps to 120.0.
He’s also logged only three assists in 50 minutes.
DeRozan hasn’t exactly been lighting it up in his new bench role, either. The offense sits at 105 when he’s on the floor with any combination of the other four players, according to DataBallr. But that comes with some context: he’s adjusting to coming off the bench for the first time in his career, and he’s also had to share 50 minutes with Tyus at point guard.
Still, the trend is encouraging. DeRozan has already shown he can make the right reads, and his passing numbers have climbed as he settles in with his new teammates. He had five assists through his first three games, then followed that with five assists in each of the last two, pushing his season average to 3.0 per game.
Defense doesn’t solve itself in this setup, since both Tyus and DeRozan are shaky on that end. But once Diallo is back, Denver can pair him with DeRozan in the backcourt and add Brazile to give the second unit more defensive bite.
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Christian Braun Is Forcing A Bigger Nuggets Question Early
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What makes this start more interesting is how closely it tracks his 2024-25 form, which suggests this is not just a hot week but a continuation of real growth. Braun has been active defensively, disruptive on the ball and steady enough offensively to make the Nuggets think about how much more responsibility he can handle as the season settles in. [Read more 🡒]
Nuggets Hot Shooting Is Hiding An Early Offensive Concern
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But the bigger issue is still lurking underneath the hot shooting. Denver has not been finishing nearly enough possessions around the rim, and through five games the paint scoring has lagged well behind where it usually sits for a team built around Nikola Jokic. Even with the outside shot carrying more of the load, the Nuggets know they will need more consistent production in the lane if they want the offense to look like itself over the long haul. [Read more 🡒]
Nuggets Already Have A Backup Guard Problem They Can't Ignore
The Nuggets early bench look has already put a spotlight on one of the trickier rotation questions around the backcourt. Tyus Jones was brought in to steady second-unit minutes, but his role has been limited so far, and the pairing with DeMar DeRozan has not given Denver the kind of two-way lift it needs when the starters sit. DeRozans defense has been a concern, as expected, and the overall fit has left the Nuggets searching for a better answer.
What makes the issue more pressing is how much the team is leaning on Jamal Murray to carry the load in the meantime. Denver is already exploring other ways to handle backup point guard minutes, which suggests the current setup is not something it can simply ride out. For a team with real postseason ambitions, getting that reserve guard spot right may end up mattering a lot more than it did on paper. [Read more 🡒]