The Denver Nuggets were supposed to be the deepest version of the Nuggets in the Nikola Jokic era. Instead, they left an injured player on the court who was clearly hampered, while a better option sat on the bench. Christian Braun played despite a calf injury he sustained in Game 1, and the Nuggets kept using him rather than turning to a healthy Julian Strawther or someone else.
The Denver Nuggets ' first-round exit to the Minnesota Timberwolves had some questionable moments. The lack of a response in the series to Jaden McDaniels' comments, the seeming lack of grit and physicality the Timberwolves had brought against them, and the strange use of certain rotations and players at times.
Now we have a report from Bennett Durando that Braun was playing injured, and the Nuggets failed to make use of Strawther. Which makes no sense now in hindsight.
Braun was clearly limited against the Timberwolves
Braun clearly looked limited against the Timberwolves, and we now find out he had a left calf injury, and that the ankle that forced him to miss 38 games was swollen, too. Braun only averaged 8.3 points in the six games of the series, and he had many opportunities to hit shots in the paint that just never converted or were never attempted.
Notably, in Game 2's home loss, Braun couldn't get off the ground with 20 seconds left to hit a layup, and he was instead fouled and clanked one of the two free throws that could have tied the game.
Why didn't the Nuggets turn to Strawther?
So if the Nuggets knew Braun was hurt, why wasn't someone else in there? Why wasn't Strawther getting more playing time? It's not like Braun had a hot hand or anything. Strawther actually scored more points as a starter than Braun did this year.
Strawther averaged 14.8 points in 14 starts against Brauns' 12.0 in 44 starts. Strawther also shot 38.7% from three-point range, compared to Braun's 30.1%. Strawther offered more cutting ability than an injured Braun did, too, and he could have opened up the passing lanes for Nikola Jokic more. Strawther can score, and it's just odd that the Nuggets didn't try to turn to him with Braun hurt.
It's certainly eyebrow-raising from a fan's standpoint. The Nuggets' bench was supposed to be deep. Why weren't Tim Hardaway or Bruce Brown given more time? Did Braun downplay the injury and put the team at more risk? Braun never looked right all season, and he looked worse against the Timberwolves.
We know everyone would love to have a do-over of some of the moments in the series. Probably add having a hobbled Braun playing instead of someone healthy to the list.
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