The Nuggets secret weapon could help take them to the next level

After what seemed like a poor offseason, the Denver Nuggets are suddenly looking a lot better as they start the 2024-25 season. The biggest concern surrounding the Nuggets involved their depth or lack thereof, especially after losing former starter Kentavious-Caldwell Pope (KCP).

Fortunately, things are looking up, with Christian Braun looking like he might be a strong replacement for KCP. Better still, the emergence of second-year forward Julian Strawther has given the Nuggets another potential option and should help them address their depth concerns.

Denver took a risk in relying on their young players to take a step forward and thus far it seems like their gamble is beginning to pay off.  During Denver's preseason, Strawther played exceedingly well, averaging 18.8 points while shooting 50% from three on five attempts per game.

Those numbers probably won't translate to the regular season but it is encouraging and suggests that the Nuggets may have found a key rotation player.

The Denver Nuggets may have found a key rotation player in Julian Strawther.

Despite having a top-five offense last season, the Nuggets didn't actually take many threes, ranking last in the NBA in 3-point attempts per game. Losing KCP has also led to questions about their spacing. Braun is a high-percentage 3-point shooter but will need to increase his volume to truly replace him.

Fortunately, Strawther's flashes of impressive shotmaking give the Nuggets hope that he can help them add more shooting around Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. Doing so would make an already elite offense even better.

Considering that the Nuggets came within a few minutes of making the Western Conference Finals for the third time in four years, even a slight improvement on offense could be enough to get them back to the NBA Finals. 

Strawther being able to move off-ball by sprinting around screens to get open for threes should make him a perfect weapon, even off the bench. Playing primarily against opposing second units, where teams tend to play their worst defenders, should ensure that he consistently gets open for threes.

Moreover, his shooting touch should allow him to knock down plenty of open shots. When he shares the floor with Jokic, Jokic's court vision and passing should also help him to get open looks. 

If Strawther can continue his strong play into the regular season, then the Nuggets would have struck gold after having taken him 29th overall in the 2023 NBA Draft. He is still on his rookie contract for the next three seasons and could help to offset Denver's larger contracts. After a shaky summer, the Nuggets suddenly look like contenders again.