As the Denver Nuggets near the end of the 2024-25 regular season, certain factors are showing just how important they were to Denver’s growing sense of inevitable playoff exit.
Denver’s fatigue as a team has been unavoidable. With head coach Michael Malone unable or unwilling to trust Denver’s depth, the Nuggets starters have grown more and more tired as the season wears on. Nikola Jokic is carrying a heavy burden, as is Jamal Murray. Michael Porter Jr. and Christian Braun have played extensive minutes. Aaron Gordon is battling through injuries. Through it all, the end of Denver’s bench has been as rested as it’s ever been.
If the Nuggets end up failing, it will be for a number of reasons. One of the most important factors though: Denver’s stars are gassed again, and there’s no way for Denver to rest them while also winning enough games to ensure proper playoff positioning.
On the latest episode of Pickaxe and Roll, Ryan Blackburn shares his final thoughts from this weekend’s back-to-back vs the Lakers and Wizards. Then, he discusses how fatigue has been building in Denver due to subpar depth. Finally, he predicts the Nuggets playoff seeding and previews tonight’s Nuggets-Warriors matchup on national TV.
Pickaxe and Roll is a Nuggets podcast streamed live on YouTube every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday at 10am MT. You can catch episodes live by subscribing to the Mile High Sports YouTube channel and turning on Bell Notifications.
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