Much has been made of the ugly-looking start to the season for the Denver Nuggets. The team’s 4-3 record doesn’t seem like much of a reason for concern, but their issues are glaring. The Nuggets have had to work extremely hard to pull out their four wins and they’ve come against the likes of the Nets, Jazz, and Raptors twice.
The bench has largely been brutal, Jamal Murray has been disappointed and is now concussed, and Aaron Gordon now has a calf strain that will sideline him for multiple weeks. Nikola Jokic is playing like a madman and doing everything a player can do on a basketball court to keep his team competitive.
Christian Braun has also gotten a lot of attention for his strong play this season now that he is a full-time starter for the first time. Overall, there have been some reasons for optimism, especially recently, but there are far more reasons for Nuggets fans to be worried.
Nuggets need Porter Jr. to raise his game a level
Oddly enough, the Nugget who has gone under the radar the most has been the one who may be the team’s X-factor this season; Michael Porter Jr. MPJ had a great offseason and came into the season ready to take his game to another level.
He got off to a slow start but has turned it on in recent games. He’s the best and highest-volume shooter on the team and with his frame, his shooting needs to be utilized as one of the league’s best weapons. On top of that, the Nuggets are going to need his offense more than ever as Jamal Murray still doesn’t look like his old self.
Add that to Gordon’s injury and a very unreliable bench and it’s clear, Jokic needs help and Porter Jr. is the only one who can provide it. He’s at an age and point in his career where he should be entering his prime and it’s time for him to take that next step and become a reliable number two option on this team - or at least a 2B to Murray’s 2A.
Help isn’t coming from the outside, so if Porter Jr. can’t pick up the slack it’s going to mean a lot more Russell Westbrook than fans are comfortable with. That’s not a recipe for a successful NBA team in 2024.
If Mike can continue his ascent and become a legitimate partner for Jokic, this will make everyone’s life easier in Denver. Murray will be able to pick his spots more often and save his energy for crunch time and Jokic won’t feel as much pressure to set new NBA records every game.
Porter Jr. needs to live up to the max contract he’s earning and the way he does may well dictate the success of the Nuggets this season. If his game goes up a notch, it’s easy to see this team in contention to win the Western Conference. But if not, this team may struggle to stay out of the play-in tournament and MPJ will see his name back in trade rumors.