Denver Nuggets head coach David Adelman had his hands full last season trying to juggle his rotations, as many of his starters and reserves alike were in and out of the lineup due to a myriad of injuries. All told, the starters lost 136 games to injury, and the Nuggets still found a way to win 54 games with 28 different starting lineups. While we obviously have no idea how the injury front is going to play out in 2026-27, Adelman will likely still have his hands full.
That's because the Nuggets lost a couple of key members from the rotation, and some of the additions are lacking the experience of the person they're replacing. While it's easy to say, "just plug in Julian Strawther for the minutes that Tim Hardaway Jr. occupied." It doesn't quite work out that way. Sure, Strawther will probably be a good fit for those minutes, but his defense is lacking, and Adelman will need to pair him with someone else on the floor to maximize that floor unit.
Adelman's bench is talented, but has question marks
Adelman's rotations need to be strategic in the new season due to all of the question marks the Nuggets added this offseason. They've added a 29-year-old rookie defensive specialist in Alpha Diallo, but he's never played in the NBA. They've added Trevon Brazile, the rookie second-round pick, but if he's like Nuggets rookies of the past, he might not get any significant floor time.
And now Tyus Jones is the backup point guard to Jamal Murray. He's an elite ball-control specialist, but the offense could stagnate with him on the court as a distributor if the right floor pairing isn't made.
The only replacement that could be more of a plug-and-play fit would be Marvin Bagley III as the backup center in place of the departed Jonas Valanciunas.
Adleman needs to find the right pairings
Part of Adleman's strategic pairings should involve using Diallo and his superb on-ball defense to guard the better wings, taking defensive pressure off Strawther so there is a good balance when they are on the court together. Or perhaps another strategy to keep the offense from stagnating when Tyus Jones is on the court is to make sure Nikola Jokic is also on the floor. Jokic can then help distribute, and the offense doesn't slow down so much.
If the Nuggets decide to use Brazile in the backup center spot for a spell, Adelman should have him paired with Aaron Gordon in the frontcourt so there's a known, good defender to take on the opponent's best frontcourt player.
Strategic adjustments. We didn't see them in the first round of the playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves as much as fans would have liked, but the Nuggets added depth to the bench by way of former Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings head coach Dave Joerger. He'll at least be in Adelman's ear about adjustments.
Adelman showed last year that he can get the job done during the regular season amid adversity. He should be able to figure out the new additions and how to manage the lack of experience and the question marks, too.
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