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Nuggets: Paul Millsap loves Denver’s unselfish play style

By Tom West

DENVER, CO - JULY 13: Denver Nuggets officially announced the signing of Paul Millsap on July 13, 2017 at a press conference at the Montbello Rec Center. Denver Nuggets President and Governor Josh Kroenke smiles as Millsap gets his jersey with the number 4 on it. Millsap signed as a free agent through the 2020-2021 season. (Photo by John Leyba/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - JULY 13: Denver Nuggets officially announced the signing of Paul Millsap on July 13, 2017 at a press conference at the Montbello Rec Center. Denver Nuggets President and Governor Josh Kroenke smiles as Millsap gets his jersey with the number 4 on it. Millsap signed as a free agent through the 2020-2021 season. (Photo by John Leyba/The Denver Post via Getty Images) /
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The Denver Nuggets’ fluid offensive style and passing played a big part in drawing Paul Millsap to the team.

The Denver Nuggets feel like a perfect fit for Paul Millsap. He lived in Denver for 12 years while he was growing up, the team has wanted him for years, and he should work perfectly with Nikola Jokic. The last factor in particular appealed to Millsap when considering the team from a purely technical standpoint, with Jokic’s passing freeing up more opportunities for Millsap to cut, spot-up and work off the ball next to the league’s best passing center.

In fact, the Nuggets’ ball movement and selfless approach as a whole is what makes Millsap believe he’ll fit right in, as he explained on Altitude Sports Radio (h/t NBA.com’s Christopher Dempsey):

"“Just their style of play, you know, how unselfish they are… It starts with five guys on the court willing to give up the basketball to get a better shot, willing to hit the open guy and that’s what I’m all about as a basketball player. It’s fun to watch and fun to be a part of and I think that’s what it’s all about. You have to have fun playing basketball.”"

The Nuggets’ offense is nothing but fun. They ranked first in offensive rating from December 15 onwards once Jokic became the full-time starting center and finished the season ranked seventh in pace, fourth in assist ratio and second in points off cuts. Essentially, their offense is full of constant player and ball movement, which all works incredibly well when anchored by the incredible playmaking of Jokic.

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Millsap fits right into that (as I’ve written about in a little more detail here), and he can support the team’s style with his own passing and ability to find the right spots, both with his three-point range and cuts to the basket. As a post facilitator, he can be highly effective when drawing double teams and kicking outside or dropping the ball to cutters, too.

“With him and his passing ability and his IQ and the way guys move and cut when he has the basketball, I’m going to be one of those guys cutting looking to get easy layups,” Millsap added when discussing how Jokic can help him.

Last season, Millsap averaged career-highs of 18.1 points and 3.7 assists per game in an Atlanta Hawks offense that wasn’t nearly as successful with Dennis Schroder and Dwight Howard as the team hoped. They ranked 27th in offensive rating and a good but not great 11th in assist ratio.

Next: Why Millsap will fit perfectly with Jokic

When teaming up with Jokic and the Nuggets, Millsap can enjoy far better talent and movement to play off, which should only help his efficiency (he slipped a little to a career-low 44.2 percent shooting last season).

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