Grim reality check for Nuggets after game 1 of summer

The dust has settled from the debacle that was the first Las Vegas Summer League for the Denver Nuggets and putting it mildly, it didn’t go well. The headliner was obviously the devastating injury to DaRon Holmes; the big rookie out of Dayton suffered a torn achilles and he’ll now miss the entire 2024-25 season.

DaRon Holmes injury leaves a major hole

It doesn’t get much worse than that. The Nuggets put a ton of stock in their first-round pick and he was expected to step in immediately and play a big role off the bench. His loss is a crushing blow that will make the Nuggets reevaluate their plans for this season. 

They’ll need to rely heavily on guys like Peyton Watson, Dario Saric, Vlatko Cancar, and even Zeke Nnaji and DeAndre Jordan. Whether or not they’ll try to add another big remains to be seen, but it’s not a legitimate consideration for a position that seemed fairly solid a few days ago.

Can Jalen Pickett really be the backup point guard?

But beyond that obvious issue, the Nuggets didn’t exactly get clarity at any other position either. Jalen Pickett came into camp with hopes of winning the backup point guard job, but he was extremely disappointing in the first game. He struggled to lead the offense and was even worse with his shot. 

He’s a guy who should stick out and the opposite was the case as he looked like just another guy out there. It’s only one game, but we’re going to need to see a lot more out of Pickett for him to have any real shot at cracking the rotation. But based on what we’ve seen, the Nuggets have some real urgency to go out and add a backup point guard.

Julian Strawther is nothing more than a shooting guard

Julian Strawther looked solid, but Michael Malone’s claim that he could play point guard seems pretty optimistic. Strawther didn’t seem like he had eyes for anything but the basket, launching at will but only hitting 3 of his 10 shots from deep. He did lead the team in scoring and showed an ability to get off shots. There’s hope for Strawther to be an off-guard in the rotation, but probably not much more.

Beyond that, there weren’t a lot of positive takeaways. Hunter Tyson didn’t look like an NBA-caliber big man on the defensive end. The only player who really shined was Trey Alexander, the rookie signed to a two-way deal out of Creighton. Anyone emerging would be huge for the Nuggets and maybe Alexander will be that pleasant surprise.

Hopefully, the Nuggets had some jitters for the first game and they’ll bounce back in a big way. So much of this season is predicated on young players stepping up. The Nuggets made a big bet on youth and if these guys aren’t able to step up and contribute in a meaningful way, the team is going to be in trouble.