In the 4th edition of Denver Nuggets’ player report cards this season, much of the rotation has found their groove and the team has been playing really well overall. Just like in the December Report Cards, this will only include Nuggets who appeared in 5+ games in January and 8+ minutes per game in those matches, indicating that they were a nightly rotation piece at some point.
Due to the 5-game minimum and 8-minute per game requirement, players such as Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson will not be given report cards this month. This results in just 9 grades to report for the month of January, where Denver started out 10-3, looking like a title contender, but ended the month 1-3 to make it a strong but less dominant month in totality.
The player report card grades are weighted in relation to the specific role and expectations of the player entering the month and to a lesser extent, entering the season. Which Nuggets made the case that Denver should be in the championship-mix this season and who will find themselves potentially traded or have their spot in the rotation gone after the trade deadline?
The honors program hoopers (A- grades or better)
Christian Braun: A- (October: A, November: A, December: C- Overall: B+)
It feels a bit weird starting with Christian Braun in this top-tier group considering he was just moved to the bench unit. Despite this, anyone who has actually watched Denver this month (Kendrick Perkins clearly has not) knows that the move was not due to the young wing performing poorly. He has been fantastic in January.
After a very rough shooting stretch in December, Braun was lights out in January, shooting 60.4% from the field, 42.2% from three, and 90.9% from the FT line. That’s right, he was a part of the 60/40/90 club this month. Braun gets a very slight ding simply for his defense not translating well over the back half of the month, but that does not diminish his month overall.
Jamal Murray: A- (October: C-, November: D+, December: B, Overall: C+)
Whether fans prefer “Skinny Jamal” or “Afro Jamal” or “Blue Arrow”, one thing is for sure… Jamal Murray is back! After a very frustrating start to the season, he began to find his groove in December and looks to be in his full-form again in January. This is not atypical for Murray who usually plays himself into shape throughout the season, but it is still important to see.
Murray shot 48.8% from the field in January and had scoring outputs of 45, 33, 31, and 30 all this month. He had just one 30+ in all months prior (Dec. 28th against Detroit). He is looking shifty, quick, and in control, getting to the rim with ease. He is also shooting 92.2% from the FT line on 3 attempts per game, which is usually a good indicator that he is locked in.
Nikola Jokic: A- (October: A+, November: A+, December: A, Overall: A)
What is there to say about the best player in the world? Nikola Jokic was fan-flipping-tastic yet again in January, yet it was somehow his worst month of the season, primarily due to a lack of engagement and some defensive indifference in the final 4 games of the month that contributed to 3 losses in a row.
Regardless, Jokic still averaged 27.0 PPG, 12.8 RPG, and 11.4 APG in the month on typical Jokic efficiency of 59/44/86 shooting splits. It looks at times like Jokic is conserving energy on the defensive end or the “conspiracy corner” take is that he wants the front office to make a trade at the deadline, but either way his defensive effort needs to pick up in February.
Russell Westbrook: A- (October: C-, November: A-, December: A-, Overall: A-)
Westbrook contributed yet another impactful and praiseworthy month in January, averaging a season high 14.6 PPG in addition to 6.2 APG and 6.1 RPG. He is also shooting what would be a career high 36.8% from beyond the arc since January began on decent volume (3.4 attempts per game).
What he is providing for the Nuggets on a veteran minimum contract is superb, so why is this not an A grade? The turnovers. Westbrook had 9 games with 4+ turnovers in the month and at times looks out of control and is costing Denver points. If this is the trade-off however, it is not the end of the world. The Russ experience has still been a resounding success.
Now onto the fellas who are playing well but perhaps not standing out as much.
The class average court-goers (C to B+ grades)
Michael Porter Jr.: B+ (October: C-, November B+, December: A-, Overall: B+)
Michael Porter Jr. continues his strong season overall thanks to a solid January, averaging 17.9 PPG and 6.3 RPG on 51.0% shooting and 41.7% from deep. MPJ recorded 13+ points in all but 3 games and while he only had a few monster scoring outputs, the consistency was definitely there, which is all that is needed when Jamal Murray is also playing well.
The 6’10” forward will be a huge talking point in the next week as the trade deadline nears. If the Nuggets make a large move, he is the player that will be involved. More likely than not, MPJ will stick with the team and GM Calvin Booth will work a trade on the margins instead thanks to how well he has been playing.
Aaron Gordon: B+ (October: B, November: NA, December: C+, Overall: B)
It was a strange, yet effective month for Aaron Gordon, as he returned from his calf injury. He returned to the Nuggets by coming off of the bench for 8 games and it looked really good, leading many to wonder if he could stay in a bench role long term. Instead, for the last two games he found his way back in the starting lineup and is performing well there too.
Gordon has been another Nugget who has been hyper-efficient in January with shooting splits of 55/42/91 and while his counting stats do not jump off the page, that is mostly due to only averaging 22.8 minutes per game in the month. The shooting stroke has looked great this season, the defense just needs to catch up to the offense in his case.
Peyton Watson: B- (October: D+, November: B+, December: B-, Overall: B-)
Peyton Watson was great from a shot-blocking perspective in January and his defense is clearly the best on the team this season. Unfortunately, the offense has looked incredibly clunky and he is shooting a mere 42.1% from the field and 31.0% from three. In the beginning of the month, he got off to a hotter start, but in the last 8 games, he has not scored more than 6 points.
The good news is that in 10 games for January, he recorded 3+ stocks (steals + blocks) which is what the Nuggets love to see, since his best trait is being a defensive playmaker. Denver needs to continue to develop Watson the rest of this season as he will be a key piece for them in the playoffs.
Julian Strawther: C (October: B-, November: C-, December: C-, Overall: C-)
Strawther had a bounce-back month in terms of three-point shooting in January, connecting on 39.3% of his three pointers, but there have been some issues as well. At this point, the defense has not progressed in a substantial way making him a liability on that end and his consistency overall is lacking, which is not unexpected for a young player.
The young SG had 9 double-digit scoring games in the month, but also had 6 games where he scored 5 points or less as well. He is not shooting well inside of the arc either and it’s questionable at this point if Strawther can be in a playoff rotation for Denver this year and not get targeted on defense. Could he be a potential trade asset this week?
The problem players (C- grades or lower)
DeAndre Jordan: C- (October: NA, November: C, Overall: C-)
DeAndre Jordan finds himself as the lone “problem player” in this report card, but it is not even his fault. The only reason that DJ was thrusted into this backup C role was because of the downfalls and terrible play from Dario Saric and Zeke Nnaji, as well as the injury to DaRon Holmes II before the season began.
The stats are very inept at 4.1 PPG and 5.4 RPG in 13.3 minutes per game and as of late, Jordan has even found himself outside of the rotation, with Aaron Gordon playing the backup center minutes. The backup C spot is once again perhaps the biggest trade deadline need of the Nuggets so it will be interesting to see what the front office elects to do.
The Nuggets begin February immediately against the Charlotte Hornets on February 1st and then the trade deadline is February 6th at 3:00pm eastern time. This is a crucial week for the Nuggets and their hopes to be in the running for a championship this season.