Denver Nuggets: Will elite depth matter as much in playoffs?

The Denver Nuggets have elite bench depth, but, when the playoffs roll around, are they going to have that advantage to use against opposing teams?

The Denver Nuggets are one of the best teams in the NBA, and they’ve done extremely well even when their starters struggle thanks to their excellent depth.

Right now, they can go 12 deep on a nightly basis, especially if Isaiah Thomas is able to get close to how he was before he injured his hip. However, in the playoffs, depth doesn’t have the same level importance that it carries during the regular season.

Teams will usually run only seven or eight deep in the playoffs, and that could reduce one of the strengths that Denver has used so far. Denver’s bench scores the 11th-most points in the NBA, and Thomas would likely only improve that mark. While head coach Michael Malone could continue to run his bench more than the majority of teams, it’s unlikely that they will be able to compete with the top teams that trot their starters out for 40 minutes.

The Golden State Warriors won three titles in four years on the back of elite bench units that could carry the team for stretches.

During their first title run, they would play 10 or 11 guys on any night. Last season, the Boston Celtics had eight players in their regular rotation, and they likely would have gone nine deep if Gordon Hayward never got injured on the opening night of the season.

The Nuggets bench is a strength that needs to be utilized. They have done a good job of developing talent down the roster that allows them to play so many guys on a given night.

Teams like the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder have elite starting groups, but they don’t produce as well when their bench is on the floor. Both of those teams rank in the bottom six in the NBA in bench points per game.

However, teams in the playoffs aren’t going to always give the Nuggets the luxury of doing that.

LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers has yet to average less than 38.2 minutes per game in his 13 trips to the playoffs. Even in his age 33 season last year, he played 41.9 minutes per game.

As things stand right now, point guard Jamal Murray is leading the team in minutes per game at 33.3. It will be surprising if their starters are able to average less than 36 or 37 when the playoffs begin.

Malone will likely cut either Trey Lyles or Torrey Craig out of the rotation when the playoffs get started because they need as much shooting as possible.

Those two are supposed to play the stretch-four or 3-and-D role, but Craig is the better marksman of the two at 29.3 percent from 3-point range while Lyles is at 25.4 percent. Shooting is at a premium in the playoffs, and they can get other players more opportunities to score by putting one of these guys on the bench.

Depth is great in the regular season, and it has helped the Nuggets get to where they are without having to overwork their starters. If they keep that up with the remainder of the year, they can easily keep the number two seed locked up, however, that elite depth won’t carry them in the playoffs as it does now.

Teams get better, and the rotation will have to shrink, even if it’s only two or three players seeing their minutes significantly reduced.