Player no. 3) - DaRon Holmes II
The Nuggets will also be expecting a lot from their first-round draft pick, DaRon Holmes II. Denver traded three 2nd-round picks to move up from 28th to 22nd overall where they drafted the big man out of Dayton.
Ideally, Holmes will play a big frontcourt role off the bench for the Nuggets, spelling Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic and contributing right out of the gate. That would be huge for the team and that’s something else to watch for in Las Vegas.
Holmes has a real chance to play big minutes and to be the first big man off the bench. They want him to play the 4, but he really has the skills to play alongside any of Jokic, Gordon, or newly signed Dario Saric.
Summer League is obviously not the be-all, end-all for NBA prospects, but it can certainly be predictive. The best players usually do stick out and a promising performance has definitely captured attention in the past. Roster spots are on the line and contracts can be earned in these games.
The Nuggets bench is full of question marks; if they can find a project on this team and turn them into a real player for them, that would be a massive boost. Everybody on this team is auditioning for an NBA role. Let’s hope Friday night is the start of something big for Nuggets basketball.