Denver Nuggets fans have plenty of reasons to feel uneasy about the way this offseason has gone, and the latest wave of rankings only adds to the frustration. The Athletic’s new 2026-27 power rankings don’t just cool off Denver’s title buzz - they drop the Nuggets all the way to 11th, outside the top 10 and well behind the league’s elite.
That list puts the reigning NBA champion New York Knicks first, with the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder right behind them. For Denver, that placement lands like a gut punch. It also feels hard to square with a team that still has Nikola Jokic, because any roster built around Jokic deserves to be taken seriously.
ESPN’s view is far kinder. It has the Nuggets third in the West, which feels closer to the mark.
Denver may be projected to trail the Thunder and Spurs by about 10 games, but those teams aren’t without injury questions of their own. The difference, at least on paper, is depth.
Still, the Nuggets have the one weapon that can flatten a lot of that gap: Jokic. If Denver gets to the playoffs healthy, Jokic remains the kind of force who can tilt a series almost by himself. He’ll need support, but he’s the biggest X-factor in basketball, and that matters in a seven-game setting.
That’s why the path back to a deep run still exists. If Denver lands a more favorable first-round matchup and catches a depleted Spurs or Thunder team in the next round, a trip to the Western Conference Finals is very much in play. Once a team gets that far, everything opens up.
The roster situation is still rough, and the constraints of the second-apron rules made Denver’s job much harder. The Nuggets were limited to minimum contracts, which narrowed the market fast. Even so, there are some reasons to look twice at the additions.
Alpha Diallo brings a defensive edge and is the current Defensive Player of the Year in the EuroLeague. DeMar DeRozan gives the Nuggets a potential scoring and play-making option off the bench, and Marvin Bagley III has a chance to be a useful backup for Jokic and Aaron Gordon.
So the title picture may look bruised, and the “championship or bust” talk is understandable. But buried?
Not even close. As long as Jokic is still in Denver, the Nuggets have a shot.
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Nuggets Bench Just Got A Big Upgrade With One Lingering Concern
Denver found a way to add a proven scorer and creator without blowing up its cap sheet, and the move immediately gives the bench a different look. DeRozan brings offense, playmaking and the kind of veteran presence that can steady second units, which matters for a team with limited flexibility and few appealing options in the veteran minimum market.
The fit still comes with a familiar question attached, though, because his game can squeeze spacing and invite defensive concerns. ESPNs B grade reflected that balance, treating the signing as a solid value play for the Nuggets while leaving the larger basketball test to how well his production translates when he is asked to help anchor reserve minutes. [Read more 🡒]
Former Nugget Blames One Denver Decision For The Title Core's Slide
Michael Porter Jr. used a recent podcast appearance to look back at a turning point for the Nuggets, pointing to one roster decision as the start of the title cores decline. His comments added another layer to a summer that has already seen Denver make a series of financial choices aimed at reshaping the roster and salary structure, including moves involving Porter and Peyton Watson.
The former Nuggets remarks put a spotlight on how fragile championship windows can be when balance around the stars starts to shift. Caldwell-Pope spent two seasons in Denver before moving on to Orlando, and the aftershocks of that departure have been felt in the way the Nuggets have had to keep adjusting their lineup and budget. [Read more 🡒]
Peyton Watsons Nuggets Goodbye Carries A Bigger Message For Denver
Peyton Watsons exit from Denver came with the kind of polished, sincere goodbye that usually lands hardest when a franchise has already moved on. After four years with the Nuggets, the wing was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a multi-team sign-and-trade that sent future draft picks back to Denver, closing a run that included steady growth and a breakout offensive season. Soon after, Watson took to Instagram to thank the organization, his teammates, coaches and the fans who watched him develop from a young project into a useful rotation piece.
Watsons message carried extra weight because it read less like a standard farewell than a reminder of what Denver is balancing every summer: continuity, cost, and the reality that rising players eventually price themselves out of familiar roles. The Nuggets clearly valued what he became, but the trade also underscored how quickly the roster picture can change when future assets and long-term flexibility enter the equation. For a team still trying to stay at the top of the West, losing a player who had started to hit his stride is the sort of move that can be felt well beyond one transaction. [Read more 🡒]