Following the Denver Nuggets’ wild win in game 4 over the Los Angeles Clippers in the Intuit Dome, things are looking shakier than ever with their playoff rotation. Yes, the Mile High Crew won the game, but they nearly blew a 22-point 4th quarter lead if not for Aaron Gordon’s put-back buzzer-beater dunk. Denver should turn to Zeke Nnaji in game 5 to soak up some minutes.
Despite the 101-99 win, the Nuggets' starters are playing too many minutes, and something needs to change. All five of the starting unit played 42+ minutes in game four, and with Russell Westbrook injured, Peyton Watson was the only reliable bench player, seeing 13 minutes of court time. Meanwhile, the rest of the bench barely saw the floor and looked lost when they were out there.
Jalen Pickett saw 6 minutes and was a -6 in those minutes, recording 0 points, 0 rebounds, and 1 assist. DeAndre Jordan saw 5 minutes and was a -2, recording one dunk, but missing both of his FT attempts. Then there was Vlatko Cancar, who Coach David Adelman surprisingly turned to for 2 minutes, who had an atrocious turnover and was -5 in those few minutes.
In game 5, it is reasonable to argue that Zeke Nnaji needs to be given a chance. He has had his ups and downs this year, but had extended stretches of the season where he not only looked capable but also just flat out good. If nothing else, Nnaji is a versatile defender and plays with effort, which can give Aaron Gordon and Jokic a breather for a few minutes each.
Nnaji could be sneakily effective against the Clippers small-ball lineup
There is a world in which Nnaji is forced to play backup center and gets torched by Clippers’ Ivica Zubac, but if the Nuggets map out the minutes and matchups well, Nnaji could easily play PF minutes alongside Jokic to give Gordon a break. Additionally, he could play backup C when LAC has Nicolas Batum in at their backup center spot.
In March and April, Nnaji shot an impressive 42.9% and 41.2% from beyond the arc, so he has shown to be a capable floor stretcher for an extended stretch of the season, unlike Cancar, who was never fully in the rotation. Nnaji’s size and defensive playmaking ability also make him less of a liability on that end of the floor in comparison to someone like Julian Strawther.
In those two months where Nnaji was playing consistently, he was also recording 2.1 and 1.9 stocks per game in fairly standard 14-20 minute outings. He had 8 games in particular where he recorded 3+ stocks, including a 4-block and 3-steal game against the Portland Trail Blazers and a 5-block and 1-steal game against the Charlotte Hornets.
The playoffs are obviously much tougher in terms of coaches and players targeting your weaknesses, but honestly, the Nuggets have nothing to lose from throwing Nnaji out there. If he is bad for a 2-4 minute stint, Adelman can remove him similarly to what he did to Cancar in game 4. If he is playing well, the Nuggets can use any productive minutes that the bench can offer.
Nnaji could be a nice balance that allows Watson to play some more SF minutes to allow Michael Porter Jr. to rest, and if Russell Westbrook can return, that would give the Nuggets an 8-man rotation that at least makes sense on paper for a pivotal game 5 in Ball Arena. That is assuming that there is no suspension looming for Michael Porter Jr. after his court-storming incident.