Fans have finally started to move on from the disappointing trade deadline in Denver and focus on the stretch run of the season. The All-Star break provided a good opportunity to step back and take a macro look at where the team stands. Which is currently, a pretty good spot.
All the talk for months was about how the roster was lacking and the team desperately needed an upgrade to vault them to true contender status. Rumors and speculation were rampant all the way up to the deadline and the Nuggets were connected to numerous players who ended up getting moved to other teams.
The second the deadline passed without the team making a move, focus immediately shifted to the buyout market. There was fleeting hope that former Nugget and champion Bruce Brown would be bought out after being dealt to the Pelicans.
That would have been a dream scenario for the Nuggets and they could have actually added a player who we already know fits perfectly and wouldn’t have cost them a single asset. But that dream was shortlived as the Pelicans quickly announced they had no intentions of buying out Brown.
And that ended most of the rumors about Nuggets transactions. Things cooled off as players headed on vacation or off to San Francisco for All-Star weekend. The break also happens to coincide with the Nuggets playing their best basketball of the season.
The team is on an 8-game winning streak, up to 36-19 on the season, and they’re getting contributions from guys all the way down the roster who have been stepping up in a major way lately.
Nuggets can’t be content with current roster if goal is championship
But just because the vibes are good, the Nuggets shouldn’t sit on their hands. Guys like Zeke Nnaji and Jalen Pickett have been making a positive impact lately, but the team shouldn’t assume they’re suddenly capable of being reliable parts of the playoff rotation.
These are guys who were giving the team nothing all year and were only thrust into these roles due to injuries. Prior to that, Nnaji was seen as little more than an anchor of a contract, preventing the team from making trades. A few good weeks (against subpar competition, mind you) shouldn’t change the long-term outlook for these players.
That doesn’t mean the Nuggets need to give up on them, but they also shouldn’t assume the roster is fully set for a title run either. The Nuggets should absolutely scour the buyout market and leave no stone unturned. They still have players at the end of the roster who have no hope of contributing this season.
They are too close to a title and the window is still this season as Nikola Jokic is squarely in his prime and having arguably the best season of his career. They let him down on the trade market and they can’t afford to do it again.
Calvin Booth and company need to use every possible available resource to upgrade the roster. If there’s a single player out there who could possibly come in and be helpful in a playoff situation, the team needs to jump all over that.