The defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets open play in the new 2023-24 regular season overnight against LeBron James and the Lakers, in one of two intriguing Western Conference matchups primed for television viewing. Before then, I rewind back and reflect upon some fond memories for Denver as they clinched their first NBA title on home soil four months ago beyond a Miami team who fell short after exceeding expectations en route to an unlikely Finals trip.
Denver the defending champs, now with different pressure
Denver 94-89 Heat: Jokic has another triple-double to seal maiden title
Miami star Jimmy Butler held to just 21 points on 18 shot attempts, while Strus-Vincent backcourt tandem score lowly 18 on 25 combined shots
Michael Malone’s men open the new season overnight against Lakers
I’ve already waxed lyrical about the Jokic-Murray tandem, how Denver’s supplementary players largely stepped up when called upon and the ever-growing cohesion which helped them boss their way through an arduous regular season.
Not resting on their laurels or getting too excited, as Utah and Phoenix have been previously guilty of, was a key factor once the postseason arrived and pressure heightened against teams with upset potential – like Minnesota and the Lakers.
The aforementioned duo managed just one game between them across two series, but enter the new campaign packed with renewed confidence that the necessary tweaks have been made to do a better job once the playoffs roll around again.
Denver have largely retained their core group, and the overplayed high-altitude atmosphere they welcome opposition teams at home is just another advantage they’ll gain strength from utilising when things get tight down the stretch of games.
Plenty has been said as always about the Lakers’ offseason business, this time positively, with surprise package Austin Reaves earning rave reviews during his stint with Team USA though they were beaten semifinalists in FIBA World Cup play.
Anthony Davis needs to stay healthy – easier said than done – if they’re to have much chance of success next spring and lessening the load on LeBron James as he enters Year 21 with his own physical issues sure to be under the microscope.
Small forward Michael Porter Jr can be infuriating to watch at the best of times especially defensively, but when healthy proved himself as a key piece in Denver’s title-winning run and can only improve after that experience.
“To do it [win the title] with these group of guys, there’s nothing like it. This organisation believed in me, five long years, nothing can feel better than this.
It’s my teammates, I was struggling all series but these dudes never let me get down on myself, keep me confident. That’s what we do as a team together, we are all happy for one another and they’re the best I’ve ever had.”
He had 16 points, 13 rebounds and three assists in their Game 5 win, still finding his spots and staying aggressive despite struggling with his shot from deep (35.1 3P%, compared to 41.4 during 62 regular season contests) throughout the postseason.
A lot of teams didn’t have injury luck on their side last year, the Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Pelicans among them. Neither have really strengthened this summer.
Being able to rally despite adversity is difficult but considering all they had been building beforehand, this championship was overdue for Denver after Jamal Murray’s untimely torn ACL agony two seasons ago forced them to bide their time and stay the course through a lull period where uncertain futures were ever-present.
Caldwell-Pope is a streaky shooter and admittedly inconsistent with his big-game execution, but it was the veteran shooting guard’s defensive plays that stifled Miami from forcing a Game 6. You need players like that, as well as an Aaron Gordon whose humility was key to success after being the big fish in Orlando for seven years.
Murray had shown glimpses of his ability to explode for high-scoring playoff games before (Portland in 2019, Utah in 2020) and added eight games with 30 points or more across four series, while producing the sort of career-highs (assists, steals) in other categories that made critics forget what was a down regular season for him.
“It’s an amazing feeling. Blood, sweat and tears to get to this point – everyone believed in me, getting back to myself, we proved a lot of doubters wrong.
I mean look at this. I learned about myself, being out for two postseasons, just grinding and having so many things go through my head, watching my team go through ups and downs, we had the belief from the getgo. It’s gone full circle.”
Regular season, 65 games
20.0 points, 1.0 steals, 6.2 assists, 83.3 FT%, 9.4 2PA for 49.4%, 45.5 total FG% and 39.8 3P%
Playoffs, 20 games
26.1 pts, 1.5 stls, 7.1 ast, 92.6 FT%, 13.1 2PA for 51.7%, 47.3 total FG% and 39.6 3P%
Now though he and the rest of his teammates must build on that success, which is easier said than done. Just ask Giannis after the eventful summer he’s experienced, or Stephen Curry and an ageing Warriors core readying themselves for one more run.
So, who went where this summer?
All deals with two-year contract lengths unless stated
Denver
Bruce Brown (Pacers, $45m), Jeff Green (Rockets, $19.2m), Thomas Bryant (Heat, $5.3m), Ish Smith to Hornets (undisclosed)
Miami
Gabe Vincent (Lakers, $33m over three years), Max Strus (Cavaliers, four years and $62.3m), Omar Yurtseven (Jazz, $5.3m), Cody Zeller to Pelicans (one-year, $3.1m)
Although at contrasting stages of their careers, Brown and Green proved to be useful role players part of an eight-man rotation once things tightened in the postseason, making their presence felt in various ways as impact options from the bench.
Naturally when you make a deep run, a few will benefit from the championship glare more than others especially in what was a contract year for some.
While both would’ve liked to re-sign and defend their title, it wouldn’t have made financial sense to take such pay cuts when where they’ve gone, they’ll have much different responsibilities and receive far more money than Denver could offer.
Constraints imposed by the new CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) meant teams have needed to make even tougher decisions with player contracts, if they want to avoid penalties from bypassing the luxury tax’s two new apron levels.
Internally, they’ll hope for a Year 2 leap from Christian Braun in Brown’s place while veterans like Green, Smith and even a serviceable backup big like Bryant – traded four months before they won the title last season – can be adequately replaced.
Miami’s long-running pursuit of Damian Lillard over the summer didn’t end well and that failed star trade is further exacerbated by the fact two of their sharpshooters, Vincent and Strus, have unsurprisingly been lured to rival destinations by the promise of more money than Miami could offer as well as a stable starting role.
Elsewhere, lifelong Miami Heat power forward Udonis Haslem finds he has new challenges to navigate in an analyst role after retiring this past summer.
The ball club expect to feel rejuvenated by the presence of an injury-free Tyler Herro after the 23-year-old shooting guard broke his hand during Game 1 of the first-round in Milwaukee and played no subsequent part through the rest of their playoff run.
If offseason workouts on his YouTube channel are anything to go by, fans should be optimistic about what promises to be an intriguing Year 5 for the Milwaukee native as he looks to again silence the trade noise lingering since his breakthrough 2020.
What’s next?
All times BST
Wednesday
12:30am: Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers
3am BST: Golden State Warriors vs. Phoenix Suns
Thursday
Midnight
Hornets vs. Hawks
Pacers vs. Wizards
Knicks vs. Celtics
Magic vs. Rockets
12:30am
Nets vs. Cavaliers
Heat vs. Pistons
Raptors vs. Timberwolves
1am
Bulls vs. Thunder
Grizzlies vs. Pelicans
2am
Jazz vs. Kings
2:30am
Spurs vs. Mavericks
3:30am
Clippers vs. Blazers
Miami open their season at home against the new-look Detroit Pistons led by former Suns head coach Monty Williams overnight on Thursday (from 12.30am BST), before travelling to Boston and Minnesota in a back-to-back road slate this weekend.
After opening up the season against the Lakers tonight, Denver face away trips to the Grizzlies without their suspended star Ja Morant and Oklahoma to finish the week.
Picture source: Getty Images, quotes via ESPN’s Game 5 broadcast
Mo and Sports 