The Denver Nuggets have officially announced their 2019 summer league roster. Additionally, their mini-camp is set to begin on July 1st.
Denver will hold a four day mini-camp that begins on Monday, July 1st, and runs through Thursday, July 4th. The Nuggets will practice five times before heading to Las Vegas.
The #Nuggets 2019 Summer League Roster.
Bol Bol is a notable absence, but it’s not a surprise.
Denver’s roster is highlighted by Michael Porter Jr., Jarred Vanderbilt, Thomas Welsh, and Vlatko Cancar. pic.twitter.com/7oEnhO7ZF5
— Brandon Ewing (@B_Skip1717) June 28, 2019
Michael Porter Jr. headlines the Nuggets roster, which is rounded off by 14 other players. Jarred Vanderbilt, Thomas Welsh, and Brandon Goodwin are familiar names that were with Denver last season. Vlatko Cancar will be playing in his second summer league with Denver.
Cancar was strong in Las Vegas last season, averaging nine points and three rebounds per game. The Nuggets drafted Cancar in the second-round of the 2017 NBA Draft. He has played the past two seasons with San Pablo Burgos of the ACB League in Spain.
A notable player held off Denver’s summer league roster is 2019 second-round pick Bol Bol. His health concerns are one of the reasons he slid on draft night. He is still recovering from a navicular stress fracture in his left foot.
According to Bol, his foot is 100% healed.
“Yes. My foot is 100% healed,” Bold told the media on draft night. “I just recently started getting back on the court like a month ago. I’ve slowly just been doing workouts.”
The fact that Bol is not participating in summer league has been expected. Bol has just started getting back on the court and there is no reason to rush him back to action. The Nuggets took a similar route with Porter Jr. and Vanderbilt last summer league as both were overcoming injures. Plus, Bol told the media the night of the 2019 NBA Draft that he still had not played any 5-on-5 basketball since injuring his foot.
With Bol out, the Nuggets could roll out a summer league starting five that features Goodwin, Porter Jr., Vanderbilt, Welsh, and Cancar. Those five can not do it all though as Denver will need other players to step up if they want to do well in Vegas.
Terence Davis is a player that could play a huge role in the Nuggets summer league success. After a solid four-year carer at Ole Miss, Davis went undrafted after a strong showing at the NBA Draft Combine. Davis averaged 15.2 points per game as a senior to go along with 5.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his final year with the Rebels.
The Nuggets also have another Davis on the roster — Jordan Davis — who is a local product out of the University of Northern Colorado. Davis is a Las Vegas native and is the second UNC player in two seasons — the other being Andre Spight — to play for the Nuggets’ summer league team. To find out more on Davis, check out this feature on him making the most of his opportunity.
Rion Brown is another player to keep an eye on as he looks for his chance to break into the NBA. Brown is a wing who has played overseas after his college career ended at Miami. After averaging 15.5 points per game his final year with the Hurricanes, Brown has played for Dijon in the LNB Pro-A League and Promitheas Patras in the Greek Basketball League.
Denver is also taking a chance on a number of small school players like Brandon Gilbeck (Western Illinois), Martin Krampelj (Creighton), and Keifer Sykes (Green Bay). Sykes is a name to watch as he averaged 16.5 points per game through four collegiate seasons. As a senior, Sykes averaged 18.6 points and dished out 3.9 assists per game.
Tyler Harris (Auburn), Jae’sean Tate (Ohio State), Skyler Spencer (San Diego State), and Kenny Goins (Michigan State) round out the Nuggets roster. All four certainly come from bigger schools and Harris is a player to watch as his brother — Tobias Harris — is reportedly on the Nuggets radar ahead of free agency.
Jordi Fernandez will coach the Nuggets summer league team for the second year in a row. Denver will play four games between July 5-10 before tournament play begins on Thursday July 11th.
On July 5th, the Nuggets will kick off their play in Las Vegas against the Phoenix Suns at 8:30 pm. That game will be televised on ESPN. Then, on July 7th, Denver faces off with the Orlando Magic at 3:00 pm on NBA TV. Their third game is on July 9th against the Boston Celtics at 5:00 pm on ESPN 2. Lastly, on July 10th, the Nuggets will take on the Golden State Warriors at 8:30 pm on ESPNU. All times are local.