The Nuggets are wasting no time sorting out how DeMar DeRozan fits, and the early answer is a familiar one for the veteran scorer: he’s headed to the bench.
According to comments from head coach David Adelman, as reported by Mile High Sports on X, formerly Twitter, “DeMar DeRozan will be first off the bench and the Nuggets will try to figure out which of those rotations makes the most sense,”
For DeRozan, that role would send him back to a reserve spot for the first time since his rookie season with the Toronto Raptors, more than a decade ago. Denver brought him in this offseason after his exit from the Sacramento Kings, one of the few notable moves the team made while gearing up for the 2026-27 campaign.
The Nuggets still appear set to lean on their usual starting five of Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon, and Nikola Jokic. That group has usually been one of the league’s most productive units, but last season’s playoff loss to the undermanned Minnesota Timberwolves put the spotlight on its lack of athleticism and defensive versatility.
DeRozan gives Denver a proven scoring punch when Jokic sits, the kind of instant offense that can steady the second unit when the points dry up. Even so, questions remain about whether the roster has done enough to address those athleticism concerns, especially with Peyton Watson now a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Nuggets will open their season on October 22 on the road against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In Other News...
Nuggets Bench Wings Are Making Denvers Rotation Battle Harder To Ignore
The Nuggets second preseason win over Utah offered another look at a bench group that is starting to make the back end of the rotation feel a little less settled. Denver beat the Jazz 117-106, and the wing depth was a major part of why the game had a different feel than a typical exhibition tune-up. Alpha Diallo brought energy on both ends, Cam Whitmore flashed the kind of impact the Nuggets want to see from reserve wings, and the second unit again looked like it can change the tone of a game.
Julian Strawther, meanwhile, kept building on an encouraging start to the preseason after another productive outing. For a team trying to sort out roles before the games count, those performances matter because they are happening in the right places: on the wing, in lineups where defense, spacing and shot-making all carry extra weight. Denver still has more decisions to make, and the bench wings are making those calls harder to ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Bruce Brown's Knicks Deal Says A Lot About Denver's New Reality
Bruce Brown is back in the kind of summer roster squeeze that has become common around the league, this time with the Knicks, who have signed several players to Exhibit 9 training camp deals as they sort through a crowded field for limited openings. New York values Brown for the same reasons many teams once did: versatility, experience and the ability to plug holes in a rotation without needing much time to adjust.
For Denver fans, the more telling part is the backdrop around his market. Brown said the teams interested in him "weren't many," and pointed to the second-apron salary cap rule as a frequent explanation, a reminder of how much the leagues spending limits can shape even familiar names. The Nuggets had room to add a veteran, but Brown never became a serious target there, a quiet sign of how different the roster-building reality is now compared with the one that once made him such a fit in Denver. [Read more 🡒]
Nuggets Suddenly Have A Guard Battle Fans Didn't See Coming
The Nuggets are using the preseason the way most teams use it this time of year, as a live audition for the bench, and head coach David Adelman has made it clear he wants to sort through the group before the games start counting. Denver has several new pieces in the mix, including DeMar DeRozan, Marvin Bagley III and Alpha Diallo, while the backcourt depth chart is still being sorted out behind the main rotation.
What makes the situation interesting is the squeeze it creates for the players fighting for backup guard minutes. Tyus Jones, Julian Strawther and Spencer Jones are all in the conversation, but every preseason run is carrying more weight than usual as Adelman and his staff try to decide who fits and who may be the odd man out once the roster gets trimmed down over the course of the season. [Read more 🡒]