[KingslayerParticipant]

This is part 1 of a series outlining the upcoming offseason for each team. Each part will break down a team’s cap situation, its short-term & long-term roster outlook, and how each team may approach the draft and free agency.

It would be awesome if fans of the respective teams could post comments to add to the discussion, since I closely follow only a small handful of NBA teams. If you guys enjoy this, I will continue on with as many of these as I can do before the draft. Part 1 will be… the Denver Nuggets!

2015/2016 record: 33-49

Total cap commitment = $56.3 mil + $6.8 mil (rookie draft picks) = $65 million. ~$27 million in projected cap space.

The Nuggets are in the rebuilding process, and have done a great job of adding & developing talent in recent years. They have some excellent young assets with high upside in Jokic, Mudiay, Barton, Nurkic & Harris, and some solid (if unspectacular) vets in Gallinari, Faried & Chandler. Denver also has 3 picks in the top 20, including 7^th overall. They also have plenty of cap flexibility over the short & long term, without having any glaring holes at any position on the roster. It’s tough to predict what they’ll do this offseason given the seemingly limitless options available with the talented young roster, draft picks and cap space. I don’t expect them to aggressively pursue the top tier free agents. Denver will certainly look to the trade market to add value to their team, although I don’t expect them to sacrifice premium assets or cap flexibility for just a short-term improvement.  I also wouldn’t bet on them adding 3 guaranteed rookie contracts to a young and relatively full roster. That could mean using the 15^th or 19^th pick on a draft & stash prospect, or using those picks to try and move up from 7th for a player they really like. They won’t get to 1 or 2 without including one or more of their top young players, but the drop-off from 3-5 to 7 is marginal this year, so it shouldn’t cost them an arm & a leg to move up for a specific target.

Backcourt – They are pretty well setup for the long-term with Mudiay at PG, and Barton/Harris at SG for at least the next 2 seasons. Assuming Chandler can return to form coming back from injury, they should have quality depth on the wing as well. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I don’t think Barton or Harris are capable of being the “backup” PG when Mudiay is on the bench, so they will either have to roll with Nelson or acquire a better backup (more likely). They could look to re-sign Augustin or another FA, or use one of their mid-1st draft picks on a backup PG.

Frontcourt – Faried is locked up long term for a fair contract, while Gallo only has 1 year remaining. Faried strikes me as a poor fit next to Nurkic in the frontcourt with, while a small-ball lineup of Chandler or Gallo next to Jokic lacks rim protection and rebounding to a lesser extent. Nurkic and Jokic together in the frontcourt probably isn’t a long-term option, as neither have the mobility to defend on the perimeter at a high level. They can make these different combos work, but I think using one of their frontcourt players to swing a trade could improve the roster composition and fit. A stretch 4 who offers some rim protection would be ideal, but those don’t grow on trees. Jokic is pretty close to untouchable, as he was fantastic as a rookie and has perhaps the most team-friendly contract in the NBA. Each of Faried, Gallinari and Nurkic have trade value, and one of these players could be packaged with picks to move up from 7 to the top 5. They theoretically have the assets to trade into the top 2 for Ingram or Simmons, although it would cost be costly.

Outlook – The Nuggets have the potential to develop into a future contender if they continue to make smart roster moves and develop the young players. I think they should stay the course for now and only make significant signings or trades if the transactions don’t sacrifice that future upside. Even without any dramatic roster moves, Denver could easily improve to the point of being a low playoff seed in the West next season.

Once again, if you guys enjoy this, I will continue on with as many of these as I can do before the draft.  I’ll try to make them shorter from now on! Let me know if you have any suggestions for the next team to break down.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KingslayerParticipant]

This post originally included a chart with all the player salaries, player/team options, FA cap holds, and expected rookie salaries. It got butchered once it was posted so I deleted it, and I’ll try to find a workable format for the future team breakdowns. To sum up the Nuggets cap situation… it’s gooood.

 

 

 

 

[KingslayerParticipant]

This post originally included a chart with all the player salaries, player/team options, FA cap holds, and expected rookie salaries. It got butchered once it was posted so I deleted it, and I’ll try to find a workable format for the future team breakdowns. To sum up the Nuggets cap situation… it’s gooood.

 

 

 

 

[Andrew1984Participant]

I’d say D.J. Augustin is among the top five backup PGs in the league. They should re-sign him, especially with Mudiay still being a little bit of a question mark.

[Andrew1984Participant]

I’d say D.J. Augustin is among the top five backup PGs in the league. They should re-sign him, especially with Mudiay still being a little bit of a question mark.

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 I do like these. Definitely would like to see more of them assuming you have the time/desire to continue. 

Think the Nuggets are in a good spot to keep building a nice looking team. 

Mudiay started off slow but showed some promise. I’m a huge Gary Harris fan. Barton looks like a steal and they’ve got several nice young bigs. 

Not sure who they get with the 7th pick in the draft but if I’m Denver, I’m swinging for the fences with a couple of those picks. 

Think guys like Chriss, Luwawu and Brown would be top options for them at 7 and guys like Labissiere/Maker would be a decent fit at 15. 

Not sure if they are playoff caliber, though they’ve got a set of pieces that could do good things. Don’t think Gallinari can be a playoff team’s best player unless you’ve got a Hawks-type system but they’ve certainly got a lot of longterm upside. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Al PerezParticipant]

Luwawu had been trending down, I think maybe Denver could take him with their 3rd first Rd pick but there’s a chance he falls to the second Rd  

[Al PerezParticipant]

Luwawu had been trending down, I think maybe Denver could take him with their 3rd first Rd pick but there’s a chance he falls to the second Rd  

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 I do like these. Definitely would like to see more of them assuming you have the time/desire to continue. 

Think the Nuggets are in a good spot to keep building a nice looking team. 

Mudiay started off slow but showed some promise. I’m a huge Gary Harris fan. Barton looks like a steal and they’ve got several nice young bigs. 

Not sure who they get with the 7th pick in the draft but if I’m Denver, I’m swinging for the fences with a couple of those picks. 

Think guys like Chriss, Luwawu and Brown would be top options for them at 7 and guys like Labissiere/Maker would be a decent fit at 15. 

Not sure if they are playoff caliber, though they’ve got a set of pieces that could do good things. Don’t think Gallinari can be a playoff team’s best player unless you’ve got a Hawks-type system but they’ve certainly got a lot of longterm upside. 

 

 

 

 

 

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Denver is sort of stuck in between a potential playoff push and a rebuild next year. The team doesn’t really have an identity other then being a scrappy hardworking team that can get up and down with decent depth.

 

 The best player on the roster Galinari is on a contract year next season so he will likely have one of his best seasons yet his prime is not ahead of him like most of his teammates. He is also injury prone which doesn’t help his value in trades. He has a great relationship with the Denver’s upper management and has expressed a want to stay with the team for his career on the past but things change quick in the NBA.

They are sort of like the Celtics in the sense that they have good depth and potential but with middling talent and no real star.

I think they will compete for a playoff spot next year and not try to tank because especially after this draft they will have enough young talent going forward and should now try to put the pieces together and develop thier team and identity.

 

 

[OhCanada-Participant]

 Denver is sort of stuck in between a potential playoff push and a rebuild next year. The team doesn’t really have an identity other then being a scrappy hardworking team that can get up and down with decent depth.

 

 The best player on the roster Galinari is on a contract year next season so he will likely have one of his best seasons yet his prime is not ahead of him like most of his teammates. He is also injury prone which doesn’t help his value in trades. He has a great relationship with the Denver’s upper management and has expressed a want to stay with the team for his career on the past but things change quick in the NBA.

They are sort of like the Celtics in the sense that they have good depth and potential but with middling talent and no real star.

I think they will compete for a playoff spot next year and not try to tank because especially after this draft they will have enough young talent going forward and should now try to put the pieces together and develop thier team and identity.

 

 

[CavFanPRParticipant]

They have some fantastic pieces in Mudiay, Harris, Faried, Nurkic and Jokic. Some of those pieces might not fit so trades should be considered.

[CavFanPRParticipant]

They have some fantastic pieces in Mudiay, Harris, Faried, Nurkic and Jokic. Some of those pieces might not fit so trades should be considered.

[Author]

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