Nuggets: Analyzing their defensive improvements

The Nuggets have incrementally improved on the defensive end of the floor.

The Denver Nuggets were one of the worst defensive units in the league last season. One could argue they were the worst defensive teams in the league.

This year, this is a different narrative. While the loss of Paul Millsap for three months hurts, this team has done a good job shoring up the defense. According to NBA.com/Stats, Denver has a defensive rating of 106.3 so far this season.

This is still not a stellar stat, but it is a massive jump from last year’s defensive rating of 110.5. They are also averaging 8.2 steals per game along with a defensive rebound percentage of 77.1%. Last year, they were at 78.7% and 6.9 per game.

While the Nuggets are certainly not in the same defensive realm as the Oklahoma City Thunder or the Boston Celtics, but they have really stepped up the defensive intensity this season.

Don’t get me wrong, the addition of Paul Millsap has certainly had a lot to do with this, but Coach Malone also deserves some credit as well. He came into the league as a defensive minded coach and it seems as if he may finally be emphasizing this part of the game.

The offense is there for the Nuggets, but if they can start play good defense on a consistent basis game in and game out, then they will find more success.

The loss of Millsap may hurt these numbers in the next few months, but I also believe this team has enough of an imprint from his defensive prowess to stay relevant while he heals from injury.

The Nuggets’ offense has taken a bit of a step back this year, but this is something they can live with considering the defensive improvements.

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Let’s hope these defensive strong points can hold out going forward.