After getting dominated by a shorthanded Minnesota Timberwolves, should the Nuggets blow up their core and start fresh? The answer is an emphatic no, not yet, at least.
The 4-2 series loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves was horrible. There is no getting around it. It was a devastating blow to fans in the Mile High City. Losing to a team without two starters and a key bench player, while Jaden McDaniels talks smack and then backs it up, was embarrassing.
Talking heads in the sports world have declared this the end for the Nuggets and Nikola Jokic’s reign in the NBA. Frequent Nugget hater, Kendrick Perkins, said, “He has one NBA championship. Matter of fact, I don’t think Jokic is going to win another NBA championship.” Even with all of the hate, it is important to look at this team's body of work, not just how the 2025-26 season ended.
We don't know how good this group can be
The Nuggets are only one year removed from taking the Thunder to seven games, with a non-existent bench. With the additions of Tim Hardaway Jr., Bruce Brown, and the surprising Spencer Jones coming off the bench, this team is objectively better this year than last year.
But why did they get booted in the first round if they are improved? In one word, injuries.
This year, the Nuggets got hammered by injuries in a way that we have not seen in Denver before.
- Aaron Gordon missed 46 games, plus 3 in the playoffs
- Peyton Watson missed 28 games and the entire first round series
- Jokic was out for 17 games
- Christian Braun missed 38 games
- Cam Johnson missed 28 games
With all of these injuries, the Nuggets still won 54 games in the regular season, tied for third-best in the team's NBA history. It is hard to imagine a world where the Nuggets don't set a franchise record of 57 wins when healthy. While the early playoff exits can make an organization impatient, fans need to remember that this team is still elite.
Solving the Nuggets' playoff puzzle
The first piece of the puzzle is, of course, staying healthy. For the Nuggets to compete with this elite lineup, they need to have their starters stay on the court.
Outside of simply staying healthy, the one move they must, must, must make is to put Peyton Watson in the starting lineup and bring Christian Braun off the bench. Watson stepped in while Braun was out and showed that his ceiling is much higher than Braun’s when on the court.
He has elite rim-protecting ability, is an excellent defender, and shot 41% from three this season. Braun would ideally come off the bench as he did in 2023 and offer a spark on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball.
All of this starts by securing Peyton Watson in the offseason. He is a restricted free agent, and the Nuggets will likely need to pay up to keep him. This may mean unloading players like Jonas Valanciunas, Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, Jalen Pickett, or DaRon Holmes II. This may also mean that Nuggets ownership will need to be willing to go into the second apron and pay the luxury tax for at least one year.
While this may seem extreme, the time to win is now, because they are still in the championship window, but that window is closing.
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