Denver Nuggets fans are already aware of how well their team has been shooting this season, but now the rest of the league is beginning to wake up to this fact. The Nuggets' marksmanship is one big reason why they've largely been able to survive the last three weeks without the best player on the planet.
With Nikola Jokic out, nearly everyone thought Denver would be doomed and would inevitably drop into the play-in range in the Western Conference standings. But their hot shooting has played a big part in saving them from that fate.
One data set organized by @automaticnba on X visualizes how strong Denver's shooting performance has been this season. The numbers were organized by finding total points added on pull-up three-pointers, catch-and-shoot threes, free throws, and long two-pointers, and the data is accurate as of January 20, 2026.
Not only are the Nuggets the top team in this statistical category, they're leaps and bounds ahead of the second-place team. Denver's 250.8 shooting mark is more than double the 117.9 mark held by the Boston Celtics, who come in at second.
By team. pic.twitter.com/Fr5u4zo1y8
— Automatic (@automaticnba) January 21, 2026
The Nuggets are shooting the lights out as a team
As the rest of the league begins waking up to how well the Nuggets continue to shoot on these types of shots this season, it becomes increasingly obvious that they should be viewed as a team to be feared, and one of the favorites to take home a championship. Jokic has not been on the floor for a dozen games, and this group has still been doing very impressive things offensively.
Beyond that, this Nuggets roster has not been anywhere close to fully healthy for most of the regular season at this point. They've routinely been lining up against opponents missing multiple members of the starting lineup. One could look at this as a negative given that they'll head into the playoffs with less experience as a full unit, but finding ways to still play solid team basketball in this way can only be seen as a positive.
And at the end of the day, shooting the ball at this kind of clip is highly likely to be something that translates to a postseason setting extremely well. While Jokic, Aaron Gordon, Cam Johnson, Christian Braun and others have missed time, this group has been finding success in spite of their circumstances.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, San Antonio Spurs, and other contenders in the West should be raising their eyebrows at the absurd shooting performances Denver has been putting up this season. When April and May come around, there won't be a lot of teams equipped to stop this offensive onslaught, especially when the best player in the game is leading the way.