If there is a team that can prove in the playoffs that the regular season doesn't matter anymore and can make an NBA Finals run, it's the Denver Nuggets.
Fred Katz asked Dave DuFour on The Athletic NBA Daily podcast the question, and along with the Nuggets, Katz chose the Cavaliers for the East.
At the beginning of the episode, DuFour said that Denver "doesn't feel as in-your-face as OKC and San Antonio," adding that the Nuggets seem like a team that would be "gunning for a title four years ago." He acknowledged the injuries they've dealt with, but said they still have him feeling nervous.
The Nuggets entered the season with renewed championship hopes after the front office retooled the roster, but injuries have kept them from getting into a groove. What matters now, though, is that with a couple of weeks left in the season, they have a clean injury report. They've won their last four games, building some momentum with the playoffs around the corner.
Nuggets are capable of making a championship run
Denver's past playoff and championship experience means it doesn't need time to gel before the postseason starts. This team is very comfortable playing together in high-stakes moments. The Spurs have been the better regular-season team, but the Nuggets have a big advantage over them in that department.
We know that Denver has a level it can reach in the playoffs that other teams haven't shown or are incapable of doing. A lot of that has to do with Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray, who are coming off a win where they showed just how scary the Nuggets can be offensively. They do have the league's top-rated offense, after all.
Their X-factor is Aaron Gordon, who dealt with nagging hamstring issues during the season (and in the playoffs last year), but if he can stay healthy, he's another weapon for Denver. He and Peyton Watson can help lift the otherwise lackluster defense to a level it hasn't reached during the regular season.
Again, health is especially important for this team.
Denver didn't have the kind of dominant regular season to hang with OKC (a team that has also dealt with injuries) at the top of the conference. There have been stretches when it looked like the Nuggets would be doomed to another first- or second-round exit. Who knows? That could be in the cards (let's all hope not), but no one should be surprised if they're the last team standing from the West, either.