The Denver Nuggets have announced their roster for the 2016 Samsung NBA Summer League in Las Vegas (July 8-18) and it’s stacked with shooters, ball handlers and long and lean forwards.
First round draft picks Jamal Murray and Malik Beasley highlight the 16-man roster (which is subject to change) that also includes last year’s top draft pick, Emmanuel Mudiay, third-year guard Gary Harris and former BYU star and 2011 No. 10 overall pick Jimmer Fredette. That group is expected to improve the offensive productivity of a team that averaged less than 102 points per game, ranking it in the bottom half of the league.
Murray and Beasley were among the elite shooters in the NCAA last season, while Fredette was the NCAA scoring leader in 2011. Nuggets head coach Michael Malone has said that Harris will enter the season as the team’s starting shooting guard. He’ll need to improve on his 12.3 PPG from 2015-16 with this new crop of sharpshooters now breathing down his neck.
Another first round pick from 2016, Juancho Hernangomez, is one of the athletic, stretch players the Nuggets hope will eventually complement their trio of excellent big men, Nikola Jokic, Jusuf Nurkic and Joffrey Lauvergne on the final roster. In Las Vegas, JaKarr Sampson, Axel Toupane and Mateusz Ponitka and Darius Carter will compete with Hernangomez as two-way forwards.
Three front range NCAA products will get a chance to make the Nuggets roster, as well. Josh Adams of Wyoming, Antwan Scott of Colorado State and Josh Scott of Colorado will all be in Las Vegas hoping to make an impression with head coach Michael Malone’s staff.
Denver’s first game of the Las Vegas Summer League is Friday, July 8 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, followed by games against the Memphis Grizzlies and Miami Heat before beginning the single-elimination tournament. All teams participating in the Samsung NBA Summer League are guaranteed to play a minimum of five games. Team will be seeded following the preliminary round, with the top eight seeds receiving a first-round bye in tournament play.
Nuggets assistant coach Micah Nori will assume head coaching duties for the Summer League squad.
The Nuggets full Summer League roster (subject to change) is below…
