The Denver Nuggets had their fair share of injuries last season. That could even be an understatement. The Nuggets' starting five alone lost 136 games due to a plethora of different injuries. And to start this season, they lost Spencer Jones to a hamstring injury just before the first preseason game even tipped off, and they lost Julian Strawther in the fourth preseason game. And if it feels like it takes an extra long time to get their players back on the court, you're not imagining it. The Nuggets truly take their time waiting for injuries to heal.
In fact, the Nuggets take the longest time to get their players back on the court of any team in the NBA. They take an average of 16% longer than the average team to get their players back on the court after an injury. And what's frustrating is that it doesn't even seem to matter that it takes longer, because last season, the Nuggets had several players come back only to leave the court for street clothes again.
The Nuggets will hopefully adjust their recovery timelines
The Nuggets have already been trying to manage Aaron Gordon better this year to keep him on the court more. But they also need to look into adjusting whatever it is they are doing to get their players back on the court in full health sooner.
Last year, Christian Braun, Aaron Gordon, and Peyton Watson all came back from their respective injuries only to leave the court again a few games later with re-aggravations. After spending more time in street clothes than other teams generally keep their players off the court. Make that make sense. Did AG, CB, and P-Wat all get too tight?
As it stands, Jones has been out with a hamstring injury since he missed practice on October 2nd. Four weeks. We've been hearing since before the OKC game to open the season that his return was right around the corner. But it feels like the Nuggets have gone through a set of corners since then. Strawther has been out since October 14th with a sprained knee and was expected to be re-evaluated in six weeks. But based on the data, the Nuggets will likely push that timeline out even further.
Of course, you want to see players come back healthy and ready to go. But at some point, the Nuggets need to take a look at adjusting their process and see what other teams are doing. Because the process the Nuggets are following is slow and sometimes isn't keeping their players on the court when they do return.
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