In recent years, and even in the 2023 title year, the Nuggets’ identity has been elite offense and Nikola Jokic. There’s nothing wrong with that identity, and it proved good enough to win a title, but this season, Denver can lean on other strengths to win games, specifically their defense.
The Nuggets have the third-ranked defense in the entire league, allowing just 110.6 points per 100 possessions. They are trotting out versatile athletic defenders in Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun, and Peyton Watson, with strong supplementary pieces like Bruce Brown and Spencer Jones.
On top of that, the Nuggets actually have a stable backup center and can play all 48 minutes with an elite rebounding presence of either Jokic or Jonas Valanciunas. Add the new coaching staff and commitment to a more aggressive scheme, and the Nuggets’ defense has been one of the biggest pleasant surprises in the league.
Nuggets can win with defense when offense falters
Obviously, the Nuggets are still going to be led by Jokic, the greatest offensive player of his era, but at least now there is a plan B. If the offense struggles to hit shots or Jokic has a rough night, the team still has a chance to win games thanks to their defense.
At the end of the day, the Nuggets aren’t going to ride their defense to a title, and we’ll see how long they can even last in the top five. But again, nobody was expecting this unit to be elite, and if anything, it was expected to be the team’s biggest weakness.
So, if they can just sustain an above-average level of defense, with upside for more, they should be able to steal a few extra regular season wins and make themselves that much more of a complete, well-rounded team.
With the added depth on the roster, the Nuggets have so much more lineup versatility, and with all of their elite offensive players, they can trot out groups with multiple high-level defenders. This season is all about building for the playoffs and gaining as many counters as possible for whatever opponents will throw their way.
If Denver has another option, even for small stretches of games, to put out lineups that can keep the team afloat with defense, that will be a major boon to their title chances. Ultimately, the identity of the team isn’t going to change, but the fact that they have another identity to lean on at times could make a massive impact by the time it’s all said and done.