Denver Nuggets
The 2022-23 Denver Nuggets can be defined by hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy for the first time in franchise history.
What did we learn?
Jokic and the Nuggets rose to the top on the biggest stage.
Denver dismantled opponents in dominant fashion throughout the postseason, a 16-4 playoff record not matched since the 2017 KD Warriors.
Jokic was the first player in league history to lead the playoffs in points, rebounds and assists. (Not even Wilt pulled that one off.) The Joker did what he does best: triple-doubles and winning ball games.
The Joker is now the undisputed best player in the game atop the current player pyramid. His playoff averages of 30 points, 13.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game is just silly. Classic Joker.
The Nuggets were the best team in the NBA pretty much all season long. Up until the last month of the season, Denver had the No. 2 offense and No. 13 defense and the best home record in the league. But they took their foot off the gas over the last four weeks.
Over the last month, the Nuggets went 7-10 with the No. 23 offense and No. 17 defense. It was enough to throw everybody off Denver’s championship scent. Smoke and mirrors as they got ready for the real battle of the postseason.
It cost Jokic his third straight MVP, but he obviously did not care about that one bit. He was there to go to work and get the job done in the playoffs when it mattered most.
The Jokic and Murray 2-man game was as lethal as ever. The inverted 5-1 pick-and-roll that they ran flummoxed teams all season and playoffs long, putting defenses in a pretzel. The chemistry that Jokic and Murray have from playing together for seven years is flat-out special.
In Denver’s 20 playoff games:
Jokic led the team in scoring 10 times, assists 13 times and rebounds 17 times.
Murray led the team in scoring 8 times and assists 7 times.
The other two scoring leaders were MPJ and Aaron Gordon, who were also the rebounds leaders in the three games that Jokic did not.
MPJ was not always on top of his game, but his 3-point shot is always difficult to defend. And he stayed ready and willing to keep firing. Aaron Gordon was miscast in Orlando as a No. 1 guy, but he’s a fantastic No. 3 / No. 4 and a perfect complimentary player to have around Jokic.
Calvin Booth put the final touches on this roster with the foundation that Tim Connelly laid.
The perimeter defense in KCP and Bruce Brown. The rookie in Christian Braun, who Michael Malone trusted in The Finals (!!). This team was able to win games no matter the style.
The Nuggets made quick work of the T-Wolves in the first round in 5 games. It took OT in Game 4 in Minnesota for the Wolves to stave off the sweep.
The second-round match-up with the Suns went 6 thanks to unreal shooting performances from Booker and KD (and Landry Shamet). Game 6 in Phoenix was an absolute beatdown with the Nuggets up by 30 at halftime.
The Western Conference Finals against the Lakers was competitive, but a clean sweep as Denver’s late-game execution put the Lakers away in four straight. Jokic hit the insanely difficult shots that he always does. KCP had 21 points in Game 1. Aaron Gordon had 22 points in Game 4. Jokic (28/14/12) and Murray (33/6/5) put up staggering WCF numbers.
And in The Finals, the Nuggets used their size, depth and lineup flexibility to finally put out the white-hot Heat. It was the Nuggets’ defense that held the Heat to just 96 points per game in the five Finals games.
When it was all over and the Nuggets brought a championship victory to Denver at long last, Jokic summed it all up perfectly.
“The job is done. We can go home now.”
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Additional Notes
Shoutout to Uncle Jeff who was still power dunking on people in Year 15 of his career.
NBA Finals Champion DeAndre Jordan — in Year 15.
NBA Finals Champion Ish Smith — in Year 13 and team No. 13.
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Did our preseason Over/Under prediction hit?
Jokic with his main dudes is plenty. Over 50.5 wins.
Nuggets 2022-23 record: (53-29)
Yes indeed!
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What’s Next?
The Nuggets left the draft with Julian Strawther and Jalen Pickett, both of whom seem like perfect fits along the Denver edges.
Bruce Brown has declined his player option and is a free agent. At the parade, Michael Malone said that Bruce would be back, but he’s not the one cutting the checks.
Denver has Jokic, Murray, KCP, MPJ and Aaron Gordon — the team’s top-5 players based on win shares — on the roster through at least 2024-25, so the championship core is set.
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