Denver Nuggets: Five takeaways from the 2020-21 season
By Sean Carroll
The Denver Nuggets will need a short-term Jamal Murray replacement
As mentioned before, Jamal Murray might miss all of next season or come back just before the playoffs since the schedule will still be pretty cramped following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Austin Rivers is the Flex Seal patch job at the moment and Denver was lucky he was on the free agent market, ready to jump onto a playoff roster, but the team might have to look elsewhere this offseason.
Without Jamal, Denver loses their biggest pick-and-roll threat and best off-the-dribble shooter. No, they won’t be able to find someone as good as he is for the contract they’ll be able to pay the next player, but there’s the allure of game time.
Some names that come to mind who will be available around the minimum or mid-level exception are Lou Williams, Tyler Johnson, JJ Reddick, Avery Bradley (team option for Houston), Jeff Teague, Alec Burks, James Ennis, and Patty Mills.
It’s an uninspiring list isn’t it? Unfortunately, that’s the world we’ll be living in until Jamal recovers. Luckily, there’s room for internal growth from players already on the roster, bringing me to my next point: