With less than two months until the start of another NBA season, the Denver Nuggets have made big moves to strengthen their roster. The team has added guard Tim Hardaway Jr., brought back Bruce Brown, and traded for center Jonas Valanciunas, all while acquiring sharpshooter Cam Johnson in a trade involving Michael Porter Jr. These moves address glaring deficiencies on the roster. They boost the team’s depth and prepare the squad for another run at the championship.
Bruce Brown was an integral part of the Nuggets’ championship run. Now, he’s back with the Wizards again after a brief stay in Indiana with the Pacers. Upon leaving, he made it clear that he wanted to come back to Denver, further proving his dedication to the franchise.
“Bruce is back. We won with him. Need to save his career again,” – Nikola Jokic
The addition of Hardaway Jr. brings more scoring options to the backcourt, while Valanciunas is expected to back up superstar Nikola Jokic and occasionally play alongside him. These calculated moves are considered important stepping stones toward putting together a deeper and more flexible roster.
In hindsight, the Nuggets were geniuses. Their big success was finding and then flipping Michael Porter Jr. for the best return, freeing up a ton of cap space to invest elsewhere. This same financial flexibility is what let the team trade for Cam Johnson, one of the NBA’s premier sharpshooters. The Nuggets are confident that Johnson’s talent will play a huge role in the team’s pace and space offensive scheme.
The Nuggets are focused on reaping the overall depth that they’ve created through the regular season and into the truncated playoffs. Fresh legs and a heightened competition for playing time might help shore up performance when it’s most critical.
“Indy was great for me when I was there but it was only three months,” – Bruce Brown
Even as the team heads into the stretch of the season, all eyes are on Jokic. The two-time MVP is in line for a maximum contract extension next offseason. This new deal will further cement his place as a franchise cornerstone moving forward.
“I mean, I don’t think about it,” – Nikola Jokic
Their roster transformations speak to their dedication to staying competitive in the league and knowing they need to build towards a long-term future. With these fresh faces joined by some very familiar ones returning, the Denver Nuggets are ready to be dangerous this season and beyond.
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