Before the NBA's opening week and Christmas Day slate was released, there was some skepticism about whether the Denver Nuggets were still good enough to play on Dec. 25, arguably the biggest day on the calendar. Well, the NBA still believes so, as the team will travel to Golden State to take on Steph Curry and the Warriors in the final game of the day.
It's not a bad thing if you were second-guessing whether the Nuggets would play again on Christmas, as the league could've taken things in a different direction with the questions swirling around Denver.
The mood of Nuggets Nation as far as I can take the temperature is calibrated pretty damn low right about now, coming off this (too) uneventful offseason.
— Joel Rush (@JoelRushNBA) August 11, 2026
I think you're in pretty good company in being pessimistic they'd get that Xmas game. https://t.co/yiXkTW9dQw
But this isn't a team that has already been left for dead.
Nikola Jokić still exists, and Jamal Murray is coming off a career year. Aaron Gordon is one of the most impactful role players in the entire league, if he can stay healthy, of course, which is a very real and valid concern. Christian Braun can have a bounce-back year, and then there's Peyton Watson, who could be back in Denver.
The West has gotten better (and younger) since the Nuggets won it all in 2023, but even with Denver's shortcomings over the past few years, this is still a team that can make a championship run. It is only right to showcase them on such an important and special day.
The NBA still believes in the Nuggets (and so should you!)
The only team in the West that finished in the top six of the standings this past season and didn't get a Christmas Day game was Houston. Even with Kevin Durant, it would've been hard for the league to justify putting the Rockets over the Nuggets, though they could've replaced Golden State with Houston; but there is still something special about watching Curry on Dec. 25.
Unlike the Warriors, the Nuggets' good old days aren't already in the rearview mirror. Denver still has the power to recreate a title push. Injury luck wasn't on their side last season (which actually might be an understatement), and they still finished as the No. 3 seed in the conference.
Up to this point, their major offseason loss was Tim Hardaway Jr., and as much as his three-point shooting will be missed, Denver can navigate that. I'm looking at you, Cam Johnson, who took a while to get into a groove last season but found his confidence and his shot.
Jokić and the Nuggets are still appointment viewing. What has happened this offseason (more like what hasn't) doesn't change that. Teams still don't want their path to a title to go through Denver, unless that team is Minnesota, apparently, but even that is something the Nuggets can figure out.
Don't make the mistake of counting out Denver this soon.
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