Denver Nuggets: Missing Out On A Great Divisional Opportunity
The NBA’s Northwest Division is one that never fails to remain competitive. The Denver Nuggets’ division foes, the Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz, and Minnesota Timberwolves, never fail to keep the in-division games challenging, no matter what their record is.
That same competitiveness translates to the division title race all season long, and each time strives to win the division from game one.
At the beginning of the season it appeared the race for the division was going to be a three headed monster between our Denver Nuggets, the Thunder who are the reigning division champs, and a top-five Western Conference team from last season in the Trail Blazers.
All three teams featured deep and talented rosters that, if the cards played right and chemistry came together, would be competing in April for the first place spot. However, the star studded Thunder were clearly the favorites.
Then, all of the sudden, the Thunder’s MVP Kevin Durant got injured, and he’s won’t be playing a game until sometime in December. Then, all of the sudden, the Thunder’s All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook got injured, and HE’S out for one to two months.
All of the sudden, the Denver Nuggets chances of winning the division skyrocketed. The previous division champs are starting their season without their two best players!
Plus, the Nuggets are finally healthy, and if they can use that health to build a few game lead on the Thunder by the All-Star break, then they’ll certainly be in contention when it comes down to each win and loss in April.
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Welp! That was good thinking Denver, but our Nuggets failed to answer the call. The team lost six of their first seven games. Instead of having a two or three game lead on the Thunder, the Nuggets are equal with the Thunder.
Denver’s already looking up in the division standings at Utah, Minnesota, and are already FOUR games back from the division-leading Portland Trail Blazers.
That, my friends, is what you call a wasted opportunity. The Thunder have already lost six games, and so have the Nuggets. At this point, the Nuggets hardly have a chance at making the playoffs, let alone winning the division. Either way, for our sanity, they need to turn their losing ways around fast.
The Western Conference will not wait for you to figure things out, and the conference is already leaving the Nuggets in the dust.
The Denver Nuggets are already 2.5 games back out of the eighth spot in the conference, and that spot is held by the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. Denver is looking more like an eastern conference team, and have the WORST point differential (points scored on average – points given up on average) at minus-10.0 in the conference.
Not to mention, they’ve already lost three home games (a BAD sign).
In fact, the Nuggets have looked so bad, the Los Angeles Lakers have a better point differential. The Nuggets have only had a lead at halftime once, the only game they’ve won against Detroit, and just absolutely look lost on the court.
So, our Denver Nuggets aren’t jumping on the chance, but at least one team out of the three in the “division race” is, the team that’s kicked their butt two games straight — the Trail Blazers. The Thunder’s injuries did present a great opportunity, but it’s a joke I even considered that an opportunity for this Nuggets team.