Nuggets players completely omitted from latest Ringer top 25 list

The NBA offseason approaches and has already arrived for 26 of the league’s 30 teams. With the offseason comes rumors, mock drafts, vague social media posts, and all sorts of other things that get people going. Another staple of the offseason is different lists, tiers, and rankings; ways to sort teams and players and ways to build narratives and create discourse and engagement.

On Wednesday, the Ringer and its staff put out a new list that they are calling their “Next Generation Rankings”. It’s essentially a list of the top 25 players in the league under 25 years old. The criteria were based on five elements; current performance, future performance, getting the people going, intangibles, and foundational qualities.

How did the Nuggets stack up?

There weren’t any major surprises or glaring omissions, but it was certainly notable that there wasn’t a single Nugget in the top 25. Again, this isn’t shocking as the Nuggets are built to win now and they have one of the oldest rosters in the league.

But it also exposes a glaring weakness for the Nuggets, that they really don’t have any promising young players or building blocks for the future. Obviously, they have Nikola Jokic, the best player in the world, and the goal should be to win as many championships as possible while he is in Denver. 

But Calvin Booth has preached a desire to build a dynasty and that means creating longevity. The team can’t be dependent on aging veteran players and somehow or another they need to become more youthful.

Of the eight players who were in the playoff rotation for the Nuggets, only Michael Porter Jr. and Christian Braun are 25 years old or younger. MPJ - who was a huge disappointment in the Wolves series - is currently 25 and will turn 26 in just over a month. Braun is still just 23, but he is an inconsistent bench player.

The rest of the Nuggets’ young players haven’t even cracked the rotation or carved out a consistent role in the NBA. There is still hope for guys like Peyton Watson (21), Julian Strawther (22), and Jalen Pickett (24), but those guys can’t be relied upon. The Nuggets need to reset the roster and get some young players in the door who can complement the Joker.

The top 5 players under 25

There was nothing crazy at the top of the list but the order will certainly be a topic of debate. The Ringer put Tyrese Haliburton 5th, Luka Doncic 4th, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 3rd, Anthony Edwards 2nd, and Victor Wembanyama in 1st place atop the list.