The Nuggets held pre-draft workouts over the weekend and brought in players like Caleb Love from Arizona, Oumar Ballo of Indiana, Darius Hannah from Bradley, and Hunter Dickinson out of Kansas. It's notable that Denver is holding these workouts, as it has been well documented that the team does not hold a pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Not only do the Nuggets have no picks, they currently have no GM or President of Basketball Operations either. So, it's not totally clear what they are aiming to accomplish with these workouts, but it's clear based on the caliber of the players that they worked out, the Nuggets are targeting projected late second-round or undrafted prospects.
Nuggets targeting value
These workouts indicate that the Nuggets don't anticipate moving aggressively into the draft, and certainly not into the lottery, or even the first round. They are likely hoping that at least one of these players will slip through the cracks, go undrafted, and the Nuggets can sign them to their roster.
If they like a player enough, they could possibly even trade into the second round to ensure they score the prospect they want. But none of these players are game-changers. They are older players who could ideally come in and play a role immediately, but offer little upside for the future.
Given their dearth of assets, these are the kinds of moves the Nuggets need to make, and need to hit. If they can find a second-round steal or an undrafted player who can slot into the rotation, that would be a massive win for Denver next season.
Nuggets don't have the means to land a 1st round pick
The sad reality of the situation is that the Nuggets not only have no picks, but they don't really even have the means to land a good draft pick if they wanted. If they fell in love with a prospect, they would either have to offer a pick down the road in 2031 or 2032, or part with a meaningful rotation player.
Even that may not be enough to land a top-tier prospect, which means you can pretty much kiss that dream goodbye. It becomes clearer by the day, it's going to be very difficult for the Nuggets to improve the roster this offseason in a meaningful way.
The depleted assets are now coming back to haunt them, and it starts with the lack of draft capital. If they are going to make moves, they'll have to come from a major trade or by hitting big on the margins. With some solid scouting and targeting the right rookies, they may be able to add a meaningful rotation piece, which would go a long way toward helping the team's chances of contention.