It’s been a rough few weeks for the Denver Nuggets.
With a near 40-point loss at home to the New York Knicks, some heartbreaking clutch losses, and few wins to speak of, the Nuggets are in need of a big win emotionally. Certainly, the fan base feels that way, and the organization likely does too, even if they’re more measured and patient than fans of the team.
That’s why this week is such a big one for the Nuggets.
Here’s who Denver will be facing over the next week of time:
- Monday @ Oklahoma City Thunder on national television
- Wednesday vs Houston Rockets on national television
- Thursday @ San Antonio Spurs
- Saturday @ Los Angeles Lakers on national television
Simply being on national television doesn’t make a game bigger, but given that the Nuggets are facing the 1 seed, 4 seed, 2 seed, and 5 seed in the Western Conference playoff race this week, that makes it all the more meaningful.
And yes, the Nuggets are tied with the Lakers at the 5 seed, but the Lakers technically have tiebreaker at this moment due to leading the Pacific Division (the Nuggets rank third in the Northwest behind OKC and Minnesota).
Suffice to say, it’s a big week for the Nuggets, a defining opportunity for the team to right the ship, get healthier, and get going up the standings in the West again.
Jamal Murray suffered an injury against the Knicks on Friday that gave many Nuggets fans a heart attack, but he merely suffered an ankle sprain and is questionable for tonight against the Thunder. Whether he plays or not remains to be seen, but he will certainly try to play.
At some point, the Nuggets will also welcome back Peyton Watson into the fold. He’s been out since early February after an injury vs the same Knicks team, having suffered a hamstring strain that the Nuggets are hoping to allow ample time to heal. Watson will likely be back at some point this week or next week, meaning the Nuggets have as good a chance as they’ve had since early November to be fully healthy.
In the meantime, the Nuggets are working Aaron Gordon back into the rotation, who has played in just 24 out of 64 games this season. His presence in these games will help, though it would be shocking if he played both matchups against the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs on the back-to-back.
Whatever the case is injury wise though, it’s time for Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets to find a rhythm. It might not be this week against some of the best teams in the NBA, but there’s no time like the present. With 18 games to go, the Nuggets are running out of time to show they can reach a high level of consistency on both ends of the floor. Denver’s offense has faltered a bit as they’ve attempted to straighten things out on defense. And the moment they find the offense again is the moment the defense falls apart.
Will that change by the end of the 2025-26 regular season? It’s possible, but more than that is the opportunity against the best teams in the West to avoid falling behind.
An 0-4 week is unlikely, but not impossible in this situation. If Murray misses any period of time, the Nuggets will have to find another way to initiate perimeter offense without incurring excessive turnovers. The first three matchups are against the 1st, 3rd, and 5th ranked defenses, per Cleaning the Glass. If the Nuggets can’t find their rhythm in these situations, their defense hasn’t been enough to make up the difference for the vast majority of the year.
Conversely, if the Nuggets rattled off a 3-1 or 4-0 week as they get healthier, that would put them back on the map a bit. There’s still an opportunity for Denver to rise up the standings to the 3 seed by the end of the year as they’re just one game (39-25) behind the 3 seed Minnesota Timberwolves (40-24). The best way to rise? Defeat the teams in front of them. That’s all Denver can control in their situation, and getting healthier (in theory) affords them a bit more control of the end of their season.
Likely, the Nuggets go 2-2 this week and remain status quo. Still, there’s a chance the Nuggets finish this week anywhere from the 3 seed to the 7 seed. The Phoenix Suns are just two games back of Denver and currently reside in the Play-In Tournament. A poor week would have Denver fall just as a strong week would see Denver rise the ranks.
Which way will the Nuggets go from here?