Why This Season Should Be Viewed As A Success For Nuggets
Out of the playoffs again, the Denver Nuggets’ season appears to be a failure; however, unlike the previous two seasons, there has been plenty of success.
On the surface, the Denver Nuggets‘ season appears to be another run-of-the-mill, going-nowhere 82-game stretch for a medial franchise that lacks an identity. The Nuggets are in 10th place in the Western Conference with a 31-44 record and seven games remaining.
After 10 consecutive years of postseason hoops, Denver will miss the playoffs for the third straight year. However, unlike the previous two seasons, 2015-16 has not been a failure.
After Brian Shaw was unceremoniously ditched last March, it was glaringly obvious it was time for a culture change.
Insert Michael Malone as the Nuggets coach.
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The June 2015 hiring of Malone was the first step in a seismic culture shift. Ironically Malone was fired after a tumultuous stint in dysfunctional Sacramento and it has not been smooth sailing with Malone as first in command, but having a coach with a plan has done wonders for the Nuggets.
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Questions about his fourth-quarter rotations and minutes distribution seem minuscule compared to players quitting on the unrelatable Shaw. That alone is a success.
Gary Harris is showing he can play well in this league. In his rookie season, Harris played in just 55 games, starting six and averaging just 13.1 minutes per game. In his second campaign, Harris started all 69 of the games he has played, well enough to believe he may be the answer at shooting guard for the Nuggets in the foreseeable future.
Harris is averaging 13.6 points per game and shooting roughly 35 percent from behind the arc and 47 percent overall, an improvement from 20 percent from 3-point range and 30 percent from the field last year. Sometimes all it takes for a young player to build confidence and Harris has definitely gotten that this year.
Wing scoring has been long sought after and Harris’ emergence is a win for the Nuggets.
Will Barton has emerged as the sixth man the Nuggets desperately needed as a spark plug off the bench. Going from a virtually disregarded end-of-the-bench player in Portland, Barton has exploded this season, averaging career-highs in several categories.
His points per game (14.8), field goal percentage (44 percent), and 3-point percentage (36 percent) have all drastically increased with a career-best in minutes (28.6).
Plain and simple, in a season where losses outnumber wins Barton has been fun to watch, from the electrifying dunks which landed him in the Slam Dunk Contest or his clutch performances in close games vs. New Orleans or at Golden State, he has been great to watch.
Most importantly, the Nuggets have established a culture under Malone. Players have shown up to work and compete this season. When healthy, Kenneth Faried, who clashed with Shaw, has shown up to play this season, every night. Players who no longer wanted to be a part of the organization were traded away and off the court drama has become non-existent this season.
And that is a success.
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With seven games remaining, Denver has already eclipsed last season’s 30-win total. Any improvement in wins from season to season should be seen as, you guessed it, a success.