Good news, Nuggets fans; help may finally be on the way! The Nuggets released an injury report on Saturday afternoon, and both Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun have been officially upgraded to questionable for Sunday’s tilt in Brooklyn.
David Adelman stated a few days ago that he was hoping to get both players back by the end of the road trip, and this indicates they are on, or ahead of schedule. This is obviously excellent news for the Nuggets, who have been playing without four starters and a key backup recently.
Braun went down on November 12th with an ankle injury and has been out ever since. Just over a week later, Gordon left moments into a game in Houston with a hamstring issue and hasn’t played since. Then, days before Christmas, Cam Johnson went down with a knee injury and was ruled out for weeks.
After that, the big one hit as Nikola Jokic went down with a knee injury on Monday night, and as if that wasn’t enough, in the first game without Jokic, his backup, Jonas Valanciunas, suffered a calf injury that will keep Denver without a center for at least a few weeks.
Gordon and Braun will give Nuggets massive boost
Jamal Murray has been carrying a ridiculous burden, and Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones have been tasked with crazy workloads as well. Even DaRon Holmes and Zeke Nnaji have been called on for major minutes. So, obviously, getting any of the cavalry back will help in a major way.
Gordon and Braun should quickly slot back into their spots in the starting lineup, likely with Jamal Murray, Watson, and Holmes for now. This will allow Jones, Tim Hardaway Jr., Jalen Pickett, Bruce Brown, and others a chance to slot back into normal bench roles.Â
AG and Braun aren’t the Joker, but they will steady things on both ends of the floor for the Nuggets, inside and out. AG is the team’s best interior defender and can play some backup center when needed as well. Braun may be the team’s best perimeter stopper and will add secondary scoring and shooting with his elite transition game.
It’s not a moment too soon, as the Nuggets have lost five of their last eight and three of four, falling to 23-11, and fourth in the Western Conference, but just three games ahead of the seventh seed for the final play-in spot.
The Nuggets are still going to have to weather the storm with Jokic or a backup center, plus another starter in Johnson. But this certainly helps and should make every game much more manageable in the meantime.