Analyzing the 2021-22 Denver Nuggets

June 4th, 2022

By Alan Lu

After Nikola Jokic won the MVP last year, the Denver Nuggets were expected to build upon that by making a deeper run in this year’s playoffs.  However, Jamal Murray ended up missing the rest of the season, and Michael Porter, Jr. re-injured his back and also missed the rest of the season.  They were down two starters, and they ran into a really good, tough Golden State Warriors team.

The Nuggets ended up getting eliminated after losing in the first round to the Warriors in the playoffs, but on the bright side for them, Nikola Jokic won back-to-back NBA MVPs, and has further established himself as one of the best players in the NBA today.

Key Players:

Nikola Jokic won an NBA MVP for the second year in a row to solidify his place as one of the best players in the NBA right now, and his tremendous regular season performance helped lead the Nuggets to get to the playoffs this year.
(Photo:
Dustin Bradford/Getty Images, via KSL Sports)

Nikola Jokić
2021-22 (DEN): 27.1 PPG, 13.8 RPG, 7.9 APG, 1.5 SPG, 58 FG%, 34 3PT%, 81 FT%, 66 TS%, 32.8 PER, 15.2 WS

He became the first ever player to score 2000 points, grab 1000 rebounds, and get 500 assists in an NBA season, and he won his second consecutive MVP award.  He couldn’t get his team out of the first round of the playoffs, but he had a terrific season overall, especially considering that his team was slightly undermanned this year.

2022 Season Grade: A
Projected 2023 Rating: 4.5 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Starting center on the Denver Nuggets

Denver Nuggets’ star point guard, Jamal Murray missed the entire 2021-22 NBA season due to a knee injury.
(Photo:
Jeff Chiu/Associated Press, via KDVR)

Jamal Murray
2021-22 (DEN): N/A

He is a star point guard that missed the entire season due to a knee injury this year.

2022 Season Grade: N/A
Projected 2023 Rating: 3 stars (3.5 stars potential)
Projected 2023 Role: Starting point guard on the Denver Nuggets

Aaron Gordon had an up and down season with the Denver Nuggets this year, but he was able to provide solid supplementary scoring for them this season.
(Photo:
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images, via SFGate)

Aaron Gordon
2021-22 (DEN): 15.0 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 2.5 APG, 52 FG%, 33 3PT%, 74 FT%, 60 TS%, 15.3 PER, 5.2 WS

He is an athletic, energetic combo forward that improved his ability to score the basketball, but he still is just a middling three-point shooter, and he didn’t defend nearly as well as hoped this season.

2022 Season Grade: C+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2.5 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Starting power forward on the Denver Nuggets

Will Barton
2021-22 (DEN): 14.7 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.9 APG, 44 FG%, 37 3PT%, 80 FT%, 55 TS%, 13.4 PER, 3.2 WS

He is an athletic, versatile swingman that was able to do a little bit of everything, but didn’t defend nearly as well as hoped this season.

2022 Season Grade: C+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2.5 stars

Projected 2023 Role: Starting shooting guard on the Denver Nuggets

Monte Morris
2021-22 (DEN): 12.6 PPG, 4.4 APG, 3.0 RPG, 48 FG%, 39 3PT%, 87 FT%, 58 TS%, 14.7 PER, 5.4 WS

He played very well as the team’s starting point guard in Jamal Murray’s absence, and he proved to be a steady, reliable playmaker this season.

2022 Season Grade: B+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2.5 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

Other Notable Players:

Michael Porter, Jr. struggled with his jump shot early on this season before re-injuring his back shortly after signing his massive extension.
(Photo:
Rick Bowmer/The Associated Press, via The Denver Post)

Michael Porter, Jr.

He is an athletic, skilled combo forward that didn’t shoot the ball nearly as well this season before missing the rest of the year due to a back injury he re-aggravated this year.

2022 Season Grade: D-
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars (3 stars potential)
Projected 2023 Role: Starter on the Denver Nuggets

Bones Hyland

He had a solid rookie season, and he did a good job of shooting and passing the basketball for his team this year.

2022 Season Grade: B
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars (3 stars potential)
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

Zeke Nnaji

He is a skilled big man that shot the ball very well, and he showed surprisingly good outside shooting skills for the Denver Nuggets this year.

2022 Season Grade: B
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars (2.5 stars potential)
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

Facundo Campazzo

He is a skilled point guard that showed off solid playmaking and defensive skills, but he didn’t shoot the ball well at all, and he also barely played in the playoffs this year.

2022 Season Grade: C-
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

DeMarcus Cousins

He didn’t shoot the three-ball well quite as well, but he excelled as a scorer and rebounder for the Nuggets this year, and it’s good to see that he was able to carve out a consistent role for them late in the season.

2022 Season Grade: B
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

Jeff Green

He didn’t shoot the three-ball nearly as well as this season, but he is a skilled, versatile combo forward that provided scoring off the bench for the Nuggets this year.

2022 Season Grade: C
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

JaMychal Green

He didn’t shoot the three-ball nearly as well this season and wasn’t very assertive on offense, but he played better defense this year.

2022 Season Grade: D+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on the Denver Nuggets

Bryn Forbes

He excelled as a sharpshooter for the Denver Nuggets and provided scoring for them off the bench, but did little else this season.

2022 Season Grade: C+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Rotation player on an NBA team

Davon Reed

He played very well in the G-League, and he stepped right up to thrive in a 3 and D role in the NBA for the Denver Nuggets this year.

2022 Season Grade: A
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Fringe rotation player on an NBA team

Vlatko Čančar

He didn’t play very much this year, but he shot the ball really well in limited minutes, and showed much improved playmaking skills, and the offensively gifted forward could be due for a rotation spot on an NBA team next season.

2022 Season Grade: A-
Projected 2023 Rating: 2 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Fringe rotation player on an NBA team

Other Players on the Roster:

Markus Howard

He didn’t get much playing time, but he shot the ball better this year in very limited minutes with the Denver Nuggets.

2022 Season Grade: C+
Projected 2023 Rating: 1.5 stars (2 stars potential)
Projected 2023 Role: Fringe rotation player on an NBA team

Austin Rivers

He didn’t shoot the three-ball or defend as well as he did last year, but he was able to provide some scoring off the bench for the Denver Nuggets.

2022 Season Grade: D+
Projected 2023 Rating: 1.5 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Fringe rotation player on an NBA team

Head Coach:

Michael Malone helped his team win 48 games in the regular season, but they lost in 5 games in the first round to the Golden State Warriors in the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
(Photo:
Isaiah J. Downing/USA Today Sports, via IndyStar)

Michael Malone
2021-22 (DEN): 48-34, 1-4 in the playoffs

He did a good job of getting a slightly undermanned Nuggets team to win 48 games in the regular season, and his best player, Nikola Jokic won an NBA MVP for the second year in a row.   Malone’s Nuggets were a fairly solid defensive team this year, and they also did a good job of shooting, scoring, and distributing the basketball.

 However, they lost in the first round to the Golden State Warriors in 5 games, and they didn’t seem to put up much of a fight in the process, despite being undermanned this year.

2022 Season Grade: C+
Projected 2023 Rating: 2.5 stars
Projected 2023 Role: Head Coach of the Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets’ Projected 2022-23 Rotation:

C Nikola Jokic
F Aaron Gordon
F Michael Porter, Jr.
G Will Barton
G Jamal Murray
__________________

G Monte Morris
G Bones Hyland
F Zeke Nnaji
G Facundo Campazzo
C DeMarcus Cousins

The Denver Nuggets’ Picks in the 2022 NBA Draft:
#21

The Denver Nuggets’ Projected 2023 Win-Loss Record:
47-35, 4th in the Western Conference

Their Projected Offseason Plan:

They are all capped out, so they won’t have much money to spend in the offseason.  The Nuggets will have to rely on trades and the draft to make sound moves over the summer and fall.  They have the 21st overall pick, and they will need to select a player that fits around the talents of Nikola Jokic.

The Denver Nuggets are a good basketball team, and they have one of the best players in the NBA in having the super versatile and talented, Nikola Jokic. It will be interesting to see how they will re-integrate their other star players, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter, Jr. back into the lineup, as they will be returning from injuries.

Meanwhile, Porter is on a massive contract, as he will make almost $30 million next season, and his salary will continue to rise over the next 5 years, so the Nuggets will have to hope that he can make a full recovery from his back injury to give them very good seasons. Otherwise, the massive contract extension that they gave him could be something that they could later come to regret. In the meantime, they will need to continue to get players that fit around their core of Jokic, Murray, Porter, and Gordon, and if or when they become fully healthy, the Nuggets could become contenders to be the team to make it out of the West next year.

I went to No Trade Clause and Basketball-Reference for research purposes.  Thanks for reading.

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