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Last year I was really impressed by the Nuggets run. They seemed like a team poised to be the first to repeat for many years. However watching the way the Wolves are hammering the defending champs. Perhaps its time to look at last year's Nuggets run and decide whether it was really just Denver having easy opponents. I also think Jokic's great stats gave people the impression that the team as a whole was great also instead of simply one of the better teams in the league last year and this year. I know the Wolves series is not over, but it sure feels like we know how its going to end. And one can make the excuse that Murray is not 100%. Well Golbert did not even play in game 2. So you can throw that out the window.
According to hoopshype Denver had the 5th easiest path to a title ever and the easiest in 60 years. They did not face a team that won 50 games in the post season. This year in the 1st round the Lakers led for about 200 minutes of the series, the Nuggets 50 minutes. The Nuggets played well in crunch time but not well overall.
So were the Nuggets the most overrated champion in 60 years and doomed to fail when they finally faced a good team?
Possibly. Someone mentioned in another thread that letting Bruce Brown and Jeff Green go messed up their depth. I am sure it was a business decision, i.e.-didn't want to pay Brown but they could have kept Green for the vets minimum. Seems like that may have been lightening in the bottle which the Nuggets can't recapture. Not yet, anyway.
Possibly. Someone mentioned in another thread that letting Bruce Brown and Jeff Green go messed up their depth. I am sure it was a business decision, i.e.-didn't want to pay Brown but they could have kept Green for the vets minimum. Seems like that may have been lightening in the bottle which the Nuggets can't recapture. Not yet, anyway.
Having Jokic keeps you a playoff team no matter what. But it matters who they surround Jokic with. Perhaps Murray is not the right one for them. He just gets hurt too much. He cost them two seasons with his previous injury and now this year.
Murray looked like a legit #2 option but we probably should’ve known guys like Gordon and Pope weren’t going to be legitimate pieces for long-term success. It’s easy to get blinded by Jokic’s greatness but it’s starting to look like it was truly a one-off like Dirk’s run.
Denver benefited from an overall down year in the NBA and a Boston flame-out for sure, but they were clearly the best team in the NBA last year and whatever opponents they did face in the playoffs got blown away by them. You can't do more than beat who is in front of you decidedly and impressively, which they did.
They tied for the best record in the West this year, second most wins in the NBA, better regular season than last year by W/L totals, although they played harder down the stretch this season for seeding reasons. I reserve judgment on the playoff run. Denver has been down before and come back in series, so I won't sign their death warrant just yet. The next two wins should be the hardest.
Jokic makes everyone around him look good, remember when Gary Harris was "up and coming?" That was an illusion. Remember when Malik Beasley was the next great marksmen off the bench? So, yeah, it is hard to tell how good his supporting cast is. I think Murray is a great second option, but being oft-injured has hurt them come playoff time several years now in Jokic's prime. Porter, Gordon, and KCP function in their roles well. The bench has given them nothing.
Dirk's Mavs are a poor comparison because that team was assembled from spare parts and then instantly dismantled after winning. The Billups/Wallace squared Pistons <-------> 2000s Spurs are better examples. Both teams had cores that stayed together and competed at a high level for many seasons. Obviously the Pistons are the low end, just one title. The Spurs put together several Championship runs, just never back to back. I don't see this core being taken apart, no reason to right now. They need a scorer off the bench and a big who can help match the Super-sized teams that are being put together to combat Jokic. Booth is a good GM, I think he can find those pieces.
Last year I was really impressed by the Nuggets run. They seemed like a team poised to be the first to repeat for many years. However watching the way the Wolves are hammering the defending champs. Perhaps its time to look at last year's Nuggets run and decide whether it was really just Denver having easy opponents. I also think Jokic's great stats gave people the impression that the team as a whole was great also instead of simply one of the better teams in the league last year and this year. I know the Wolves series is not over, but it sure feels like we know how its going to end. And one can make the excuse that Murray is not 100%. Well Golbert did not even play in game 2. So you can throw that out the window.
According to hoopshype Denver had the 5th easiest path to a title ever and the easiest in 60 years. They did not face a team that won 50 games in the post season. This year in the 1st round the Lakers led for about 200 minutes of the series, the Nuggets 50 minutes. The Nuggets played well in crunch time but not well overall.
So were the Nuggets the most overrated champion in 60 years and doomed to fail when they finally faced a good team?
This thread aged well. Your comments did not. Past 2 seasons Denver still has not won a series against a team with 50 wins. The Wolves are a young team who would normally lose a game 7 to a more experienced team on the road. Yet here we are.
This thread should be a sticky; "How to Build the Shortest-Lived NBA Dynasty of All Time"
Nuggets have still never beaten a +50 win team in the playoffs...not very compelling.
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