Zeke Nnaji has been a Denver Nugget for longer than Mr. Nugget himself, Aaron Gordon. And because he's got such a player-friendly contract, the third-longest-tenured Nugget behind Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray is probably sticking around for one more season. As such, the Nuggets should use the preseason to find out whether there's anything worth salvaging with Nnaji.
Nnaji was selected by the Nuggets with the 22nd pick of the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft. But Nnaji never broke into the rotation as a 20-year-old rookie. And he still hasn't, six years later, despite the Nuggets inking him to a four-year, $32 million extension prior to the start of the 2023-24 season. That contract is now a giant headache, with two years, both player options, at $7.46 million left. And it's one of the reasons the Nuggets still remain over the NBA's second apron luxury tax penalty threshold. The only team over the mark.
In fact, it may have even been one of the sticking points in trade talks for Peyton Watson, theorized Tomer Azarly on the latest edition of the Third Apron Podcast. Azarly referred to the rumored three teams with interest in Watson: the Cleveland Cavaliers, who ultimately got the trade done, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Milwaukee Bucks. He called packing Nnaji in the trade a "non-starter," and it just puts the point home that Nnaji has a good chance at finishing his seventh season in Denver.
The Nuggets need to test Nnaji out in the preseason
When the Nuggets open training camp in a few weeks, one of their goals should be to find out what, if anything, can be salvaged from Nnaji. Nnaji is a decent defender in the post, and he's got the quickness to keep up with a wing. And in his limited run when the Nuggets were without Nikola Jokic for 16 games last January, Nnaji had a few good games.
Nnaji's best game came in the team effort win against the Philadelphia 76ers. Nnaji shot 7 of 11 from the floor, including showing off a bit of range by going 4-for-5 from three in 32 minutes off the bench, finishing with 21 points. Sure, the Nuggets were without all five starters, plus Tim Hardaway Jr., but the 76ers were at full strength. Nnaji led the Nuggets in rebounds with 8, and he added two steals and two blocks.
It was the first of four games scoring in double digits for Nnaji. But once Jokic returned a couple of weeks later, Nnaji was back to the garbage-time unit.
The Nuggets have nothing to lose this preseason by seeing if any of the offseason work Nnaji's been putting in has paid off. And if he starts to show that he's capable of more minutes, he could crack the thin depth of the Nuggets' bench to earn a rotation spot. Big maybe, but still worth a shot.
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