Jokic s epic performance and Murray s best start in his career. The Nuggets are really strong behind the management.

On November 22, the Nuggets played against the Rockets away from home. Braun was absent due to injury, and Aaron Gordon was injured and retired in the first 3 minutes.

In the past two seasons, not to mention the starting five missing two, even if the starting five are all there, short rotations in high-end games and maximizing the playing time of Jokic and Murray are inevitable. The Nuggets habitually run out of ammunition and food until the end of the game, and fall with the attitude of "defeat is still glorious".

But this season, everything is finally different. In other words, everything is back to the 2022-23 championship season. Jokic and Murray are surrounded by a group of reliable teammates. They make the dual-core feel more at ease in high-end games and inspire the dual-core's more terrifying combat effectiveness.

Jokic scored 34 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists. Murray had no answer at the critical moment and finally scored 26 points and 10 assists. The Nuggets narrowly defeated the Rockets and rose to second place in the Western Conference. In addition to the dual-core and retired Gordon, the Nuggets have 6 players on the field, and each of them has contributed. The four major role players introduced during the offseason performed very well, contributing a total of 39 points. Even two-way contract player Spencer Jones had shining points. Although Jones only scored one three-pointer, this three-pointer came from the critical fourth quarter chasing points. He played a significant role in chasing Sheppard and Durant on the defensive end in the second half.

The Nuggets' new management only used "human-level operations", which resulted in Jokic's MVP-level performance being upgraded to epic level, Murray having the strongest start to the season in his career, and the team's depth and defensive intensity improving. It was not unfair at all for Booth to leave get out of class with so many insults.

After winning the championship, the Nuggets fell to the conference semifinals for two consecutive years, losing to the Timberwolves and Thunder in tiebreakers. Looking back at the Nuggets' two defeats, they both lost due to lack of depth.

In the 2024 Western Conference semifinals, even though Michael Malone has all kinds of strategies, there are actually only 6-7 players who can gain his trust. In the tiebreaker, the Nuggets once established a 20-point advantage, but when the Nuggets ran out of energy, the 20-point advantage was lost.

In the 2025 Western Conference semifinals, Adelman has tried to lengthen the rotation as much as possible, but the role players are really not good enough. In G4 and G5, the Nuggets lost two extremely regrettable games. The Thunder used a 10-man rotation to wear down the Nuggets' main force. Gordon was so tired that he strained his hamstring, and the Nuggets lost their ability to resist in the seventh game and suffered a net loss of 32 points.

"We created opportunities, but quickly collapsed. The Thunder won the game with role players," Adelman Jr. concluded. He believed that the gap between the Nuggets and the championship teams was not only in depth, but also in the quality of role players. This made "the opponents in the past two years have used a lot of man-to-man defense that looks like a zone defense. The defensive focus has obviously tilted towards Jokic and Murray, leaving weak-side shooters open." This has led to Jokic and Murray bearing too heavy a load.

As the number one player in the league, Jokic has the ability to crack any type of defense. But Murray has not reached that level after all. Adelman Jr. believes that the lack of depth directly affects Murray's performance in leading the team alone during rotations. Murray is frequently flanked, and the Nuggets have no other choice but to encourage Murray to "hold on for these 10 minutes and just get through it."

"The lack of depth had a great impact on Murray. Many people forget that we had a lot of depth the year we won the championship. Murray led the second team and performed well. He scored multiple triple-doubles in the finals and scored 40 points in a single game. If you give him space, his performance is unique," Adelman Jr. said.

So in the 2025 offseason, the Nuggets, who have experienced the pain of pain, have a clear mission: determine a new management team and strengthen and improve depth around Jokic and Murray. Ben Tenze serves as executive vice president, Jonathan Wallace serves as executive vice president of personnel, and the Nuggets implement a dual-responsibility system. The highly praised operations of the Nuggets' new management have been explained in detail in this article during the offseason, so I won't repeat them here.

The new players are strong, Payton Watson has improved, and even Jones, a two-way contract player, is making a name for himself, and the Nuggets' depth has been qualitatively improved. Let’s look at a set of data:

This season, the Nuggets’ bench averaged a margin of 1.7 points per game, ranking 6th in the league. The top five include the Thunder and Rockets, the two major championship teams.

In the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons, the Nuggets' bench average net points per game were -1.1 points and -1.5 points respectively, ranking 22nd in the league. The Timberwolves and Thunder, which eliminated the Nuggets, ranked third and first in the league respectively this season. The Nuggets have been in the conference semifinals for two consecutive years. It's really not that complicated. They just lost due to lack of depth.

In the previous game between the Nuggets and the Timberwolves, Braun and Cameron Johnson were absent from the starting lineup, but the Nuggets still won. In the 11 minutes without Jokic, the Nuggets won by 8 points. In a battle with the Rockets, Jokic came off the court 2 minutes and 17 seconds before the end of the third quarter, and the Nuggets fell behind by 1 point. When he returned to the court, the Nuggets relied on Varan and Hardaway Jr. to establish a 2-point advantage.

"It's great to be able to perform such a high-quality performance without two starters," Jokic said after defeating the Timberwolves. "We have different types of players, and they are integrated into the team. Different positions and different types of players are playing a role."

Depth improvements and helper upgrades have helped Jokic and Murray relax and remove the shackles of overload.

Jokic quietly performed a performance that shocked the past and the present. What is even more terrifying is that you even feel that Jokic has not yet exerted his strength. Jokic averaged 29.5 points, 13 rebounds, 11 assists, and 1.7 steals per game with a shooting percentage of 63.4%. He ranked first in the rebounding and assist charts. No player in history has ever dominated the rebounding and assist charts in a single season. Jokic is expected to do something that Chamberlain has never done.

Jokic's efficiency is unparalleled. His player efficiency value (PER) exceeds 37, far exceeding his previous historical record (32.85). His true shooting percentage is close to 74%. He averages 1.49 points per shot and his two-point field goal percentage exceeds 72%. The Ringer, an American media outlet, lamented: "Do you think we have seen Jokic's peak? Think again. Do you think Jokic can't produce more crazy data? But he did it. "

Over the years, Murray has been accustomed to starting the season with mediocre efficiency and production, which is the main reason why he has not been in the All-Stars so far. But this season, the playoff version of Murray comes online early. Murray averages 22.8 points, 6.5 assists, and a true shooting percentage of 58.1%. If he maintains his scoring and assists, Murray is expected to hit career highs, making his first All-Star appearance. The journey is in sight.

"Murray has good mobility this season and his physical condition looks good," said an Eastern Conference scout.

During the game against the Rockets, Murray completed a key blow against Amen Thompson's defense. This is partly because Murray spent most of the offseason in preparation for the new season through strength training and psychological adjustment. With more room for operation, Yomu's pick-and-roll threat has increased.

The Nuggets' evolution also includes defense. Many people have not noticed that the Nuggets' points per 100 possessions this season have dropped from 115.1 points to 110.9 points, from 21st last season to 4th.

During the offseason, the Nuggets' new management has truly achieved a balance between offense and defense. While reorganizing the lineup, he also helped Adelman reorganize the coaching staff. Dudley, Mike Moss, and Chase Barford joined the assistant coaching staff to take charge of defense. Adelman praised the new coaching staff as "a valuable addition to the team."

So, is it really difficult to build a team around Jokic and Murray?

"It's enough to help our core players not be worn down." "Little Adelman gave the answer. Ironically, Booth failed to meet such a basic standard.

Now, when all members are healthy, the Nuggets can rotate 9-10 people per game, reduce core pressure, and improve their ability to withstand injury risks. They are regarded as As one of the Thunder's strongest opponents on the road to defending the title. If they play against the Thunder again, Adelman believes that they will not repeat the same mistake.

"The championship in 2023 is in the past. We are no longer the defending champion. That was our great achievement. "

"Now, it's time to write a new chapter. "

source:7m cn