The Denver Nuggets are a successful NBA team that makes up part of the Northwest Division in the Western Conference. It was originally founded in 1967 – as the Denver Larks, changing its name to the Denver Nuggets in 1974. Originally the team started in the ABA, the American Basketball Association, and it was only in 1976 that the team joined the NBA. Despite boasting a number of Hall of Famers in their historical roster, including:
- Dan Issel
- David Thompson
- Alex English
- Sarunas Marciulionis
- Spencer Haywood
- Dikembe Mutombo
- Allen Iverson
- George McGinnis
- Charlie Scott
- Bobby Jones.
The Denver Nuggets have never won and NBA Championships – nor a Conference Championships. However, they have been Division Champions 11 times – 2 times in the ABA and 9 times in the NBA – winning it in two straight season 2019 and 2020. Head Coach, Michael Malone, will definitely want a repeat of this next season – and will want to take the Denver Nuggets team that step further. So – they will be looking to strengthen their squad for an even better next season!
Denver Nuggets 2020 Season
The Denver Nuggets had a very respectable 2020-21 NBA season. Not only were they second in the Northwest Division championship with a 47-25 win-loss regular-season record, despite a tough second-round matchup, but they also managed third place in the Western Conference. The team played well, with a powerful attack and solid defense, especially after acquiring Aaron Gordon right on the trade deadline. This was very fortunate, as just after this Jamal Muray suffered an ACL tear that effectively ended his season – which was always going to have a detrimental effect on the team.
Despite this set back they managed to play well for the rest of the regular season and the Nuggets even managed to defeat the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs. However, this impressive run came to an end after they crashed out to the Phoenix Suns in the semifinals of the conference. Unfortunately, the trouble isn’t done yet with Murray set to miss the start of the 2021-22 season as he’s yet to completely recover.
Michael Porter Jr and Co Leading the Way
With all due respect to Murray, this shouldn’t have too much impact on the team as they are still in an excellent spot, with many of their best players still under contract, including their last season MVP Nikola Jokic along with Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Monte Morris and, of course, Michael Porter Jr. This should see them have a very strong start to the season.
Denver Nuggets Draft Picks 2021 First Round
The 2021 NBA draft was a great opportunity to build on the previous regular-season success. In order to strengthen the team, the Denver Nuggets signed Bones Hyland to a multi-year contract. This was officially announced by Tim Connelly, the President of Basketball on Thursday night, 5th August 2021. The rookie guard was chosen by Denver Nuggets with the 26th pick in the 2021 NBA draft. But how will Highland in the guard position affect the teams performance next season?
How Will the NBA Draft Pick Affect Next Season?
Despite a number of other prospects open to them they went ahead and chose Bones Hyland for his first season in the major league basketball. They are hoping that this year’s draft will have an immediate impact on the team and that he’ll strengthen their core team
The Denver Nuggets Team Leaders
So, in the last season, who were those playing with the most athleticism? Who managed to score the most? Let’s see which guy on the team played the best game – with the best offense, the best defense and their overall top team players:
The Most Points Per Game
The top player was Nokila Jokic with an average 2020/21 record of 26.4 points per game average. He also topped the board the previous season with an average on 9.9 points per game.#
He is followed by Jamal Murray with an average 21.2 points per game and Michael Porter Jr with 19 points per game.
The Most Rebounds Per Game
Another win here for Nikola Jokic who managed an average of 10.8 rebounds per game – and again, he won this title too in the previous season with 9.7 average rebounds per game.
In second place is Michael Porter Jr with 7.3 rebounds per game, then Aaron Gordon with 5.7 rebounds per game on average.
Field Goal Percentage
Another win here for Nikola Jokic, surprise surprise. This season, Jokic managed a field goal percentage of 56.6%. However, last season this was not his title – it was won by Tyler Cook, with a field goal percentage of 66.7%
Just behind him, with a field goal percentage of 54.3% is Michael Porter Jr. In third place came JaVale McGee with a percentage of 51.1%
Free Throw Percentage
Finally, we aren’t announcing Jokic as the winner. The title for free throw percentage goes to Facundo Campazzo, with 87.9%. However, last season it was won by Vlatko Cancar with a perfect 100% record.
In second place is Jamal Murray, who boasts a free throw percentage of 86.9% and in third place is Nikola Jokic, who had a 86.8% free throw percentage.
Assists Per Game
We’re back to Nikola Jokic again, who manages to lead the way with an average of 8.3 assists per game. This improved on his last season average of 7 assists per game. However, he still won the season.
Jamal Murray has the second highest average assists per game with 4.8 and in third place, with 3.6 assists per game on average, is Facundo Campazzo.
3 Point Field Goal Percentage
This one is Michael Porter Jr’s area of expertise, who managed a 44.5 3-point field goal percentage in the 2020-21 regular season. Last season, however, it was won by Bol Bol, with a 44.4% 3 point field goal percentage.
Jamal Murray gets second place in this one again, with a 3 point field goal percentage of 40.8% and after this was Zeke Nnaji with 40.7%.
Steals Per Game
Finally, Jamal Murray pulls out of second place and takes top spot as the player with the most steal per game, averaging 1.3. This title was won last season by Gary Harris, who managed an average of 1.4 steals per game.
Nikola Jokic stands equal with Jamal Murray, however, as he also boasts 1.3 steals per game on average and just behind these two players comes Facundo Campazzo with an average of 1.2 steals per game.
Blocks Per Game
Finally, we come to blocks per game – and this title goes to JaVale McGee, who managed an average of 1.2 blocks per game. This was quite a way about last season’s winner, Bol Bol, who managed an average of 0.9 blocks per game.
Michael Porter Jr managed to match last season’s winner, also averaging 0.9 blocks per game on average and just below this was Aaron Gordon with an average of 0.7 blocks per game.