The Denver Nuggets didn’t swing big this summer, and that was the point.
After a first-round playoff exit that left plenty of fans waiting for a major shakeup, Denver mostly stayed the course in a quiet 2026 offseason. The front office did move Peyton Watson in a sign-and-trade and bring in six-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan, but the heart of the roster stayed together.
That approach was front and center at media day on Monday, when top team decision-makers Ben Tenzer and Jon Wallace explained why the Nuggets resisted the urge to blow things up.
“I think for us, we looked at everything. There was an element of debating how hard to react and make sure not to overreact to the playoffs,” Tenzer said.
“We had a really good regular season. Everyone was disappointed in the way it ended, and our job is to be aggressive and look at everything.
Ultimately, we decided that this was the best way to move forward.”
The logic starts with the regular season Denver already put on the board. The Nuggets won 54 games while dealing with a pile of injuries and still finished with the NBA’s top offense. That doesn’t erase the postseason letdown, but it does explain why the front office felt comfortable betting on the same core.
“I think a lot of things were on the table, but obviously when the season is plagued by injuries, you can't overlook the fact that that core put together a 54-win season,” Wallace said. "... We kind of sat down and looked at what guys can do with the growth and what the projected outcomes could be, and a lot of things kind of made sense to stay put.”
Denver also has some numbers from when the group was healthy that help make the case. The starting lineup, which is expected to be the same for the 2026-27 season, went 18-5 when all healthy. That kind of production gave the Nuggets a clear reason to believe the ceiling is still there.
The bigger changes came behind the starters. Denver reshaped the bench, aiming to improve athleticism, frontcourt depth, wing help, and add a few young players with upside. Even so, there’s still some uncertainty about whether the second unit actually got better, especially with Peyton Watson, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bruce Brown all gone.
The projected roster for 2026-27 includes Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon, and Nikola Jokic in the starting five, with DeRozan, Tyus Jones, Marvin Bagley III, Lonnie Walker IV, Spencer Jones, Julian Strawther, Alpha Diallo, Zeke Nnaji, DaRon Holmes II, and Trevon Brazile listed on the bench.
Wallace pointed to the newcomers as part of the reasoning for staying patient with the core.
“Obviously, we had some additions there. Added some athletes, added some guys who are a little bit different, with TB [Trevon Brazile] and Bryce [Hopkins].
You bring in the addition of Cam Whitmore on a two-way right now. So you add some competition to the gym.
You add some stopgaps in the areas where we were kind of lacking last year. All in all, I think to keep the core together while adding some fresh faces and fresh blood was a good decision,” Wallace finished.
It may not have been the offseason plenty of Nuggets fans were hoping for, but Denver made its position clear: this group is still good enough to chase a title.
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