It's no secret that the Denver Nuggets have a special weapon in three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and his partner in crime, Jamal Murray. Their two-man game and direct handoff have always been one of the Nuggets' most efficient ways to score. But DeMar DeRozan is every bit as dangerous as Murray is at breaking down where to go on his direct handoff (DHO), playing into his elite midrange game, and the Nuggets need to maximize the play for the second unit.
Nuggets fans are used to seeing the play run all the time with Murray. In 2025-26, the Nuggets ran 4.1 DHOs to Murray per 100 possessions, and Murray averaged 1.15 points per play. That was good for about the 84th percentile amongst plays on DHOs. Very efficient. But DeMar DeRozan was even more efficient.
The Nuggets need to let DeRozan go to work in the mid-range
DeRozan only ran the DHO with the Sacramento Kings last season on 1.8 out of every 100 possessions. But he made the most of each and every one of them. DDR had 1.26 points per possession on the DHO, which ranked him in the 91st percentile. As the main scoring option off the bench for the Nuggets this year, they need to let DDR go to work in the mid-range as often as possible.
DeRozan does work in the mid-range. He attempted 6.3 mid-range jumpers per game in 2025-26, and he made 3.0 of them, both league-leading numbers. He may not have had the highest field goal percentage at 47.6%, but it was still good enough for 15th among qualified players. That's still highly efficient given the volume he put up. It was Jokic, of course, who led the league in mid-range efficiency at 55.9%.
The DHO also gives DeRozan a chance to be a playmaker if his read doesn't yield an open shot. I've talked extensively since his signing about how much of an underrated passer he is. If the Nuggets use him as a backup point guard, he could pair extremely well with Marvin Bagley on the DHO. Bagley was an extremely efficient finisher last season, making 64.1% of his shots from inside the arc. DeRozan can roll and find Bagley in the paint if there's nothing there for himself.
People can bag on the 37-year-old DeRozan's defense all they'd like. His offense was better than anything the Nuggets were going to find on a minimum contract, and it's going to transform the bench unit this season.
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