The Denver Nuggets have been an underrated passing team this season.
The Denver Nuggets are made up of a bunch of really great passers. Everyone knows about Nikola Jokic, but players like Jamal Murray, Paul Millsap and even Gary Harris are massively overlooked passers.
Denver Nuggets
When Denver wins, the ball moves fluidly and the passes and teamwork are a thing of beauty. They may not exactly be the San Antonio Spurs, but they certainly have potential to be one of the best offensive ball movement teams in the league if they can become more consistent.
A quick look at their advanced analytics tells the fan what they need to know about Denver’s ball movement.
According to NBA.com, the Nuggets are currently 10th in assist ratio as of December 22 with a total of 17.3. The fact they are in the top 10 shows how far Denver has really come since they went into a full rebuild mode a few years ago.
The nine other teams ahead of them include the Warriors, Pelicans, 76ers, Cavaliers, Hawks, Magic, Bucks, Raptors and Bulls, all in order from one to nine. If you noticed a pattern in these teams, it is that most of them are from the Eastern Conference.
Only two teams from the West are in the top 10 in assist ratio. Golden State and Denver. The Warriors are leading the league in this category and it is key Denver is one of the Western Conference teams in the top 10 for assist ratio. Plus, what better team to be in the same company as than the defending NBA champions.
The ninth place teams, the Chicago Bulls, is only point one points ahead of Denver. If Denver creeps up into the top five in this category this year, their fortunes will start changing for the better as a direct correlation.
The Nuggets have been great at passing the rock this year and have been underrated in this category.