We’re one week into the preseason and the Denver Nuggets are 2-1 after defeating the Toronto Raptors and trading wins with the Los Angeles Lakers. This week the Nuggets will face the Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors and Portland Trail Blazers. Looks to be a good slot of games.
With that, here’s this week’s news and notes, starting with results from the three games.
Game Results
SB Nation’s Denver Nuggets Preview
As part of their 2016-17 NBA season previews, Paul Flannery and Tom Ziller of SB Nation look at the upcoming year for Denver. The two debate whether or not to believe the hype surrounding the young Nuggets squad, each taking a differing opinion.
ESPN Future Power Rankings
Kevin Pelton and Chad Ford of ESPN put out their future power rankings, taking a look at where each team will be in the next three seasons. Last year, Denver was 20th on their list but this season the Nuggets have made a minor improvement at 17. Here’s what Ford had to say:
The Nuggets continue to slowly climb the rankings, jumping four spots in our last edition and another three here. The steady addition of well-chosen draft picks is the primary reason.
This summer they drafted Kentucky's Jamal Murray, a player both Kevin and I had ranked as a potential top-four pick. Add Murray to Nikola Jokic, Emmanuel Mudiay and Gary Harris, and the Nuggets are loaded with young talent while still retaining significant flexibility in the draft and free agency.
If their young players really take off, then we probably have them too low.
You think?
Tim Connelly and Michael Malone join the Vertical Podcast
Denver Nuggets GM Tim Connelly and coach Michael Malone join Adrian Wojnarowski on the The Vertical Podcast to take listeners inside the GM-coach dynamic in the NBA. Connelly and Malone take Woj inside the dynamic of how the working relationship works, how they try to avoid pitfalls that have doomed other relationships and how they collaborate on ideas and decisions. They talk about how they handle agents, players and ownership in trying to align themselves to build a winning program.
Listen to the podcast here.
Profile on Jamal Murray
The Toronto Star put together a nice piece on Canada native Jamal Murray last week before the Nuggets took on the Raptors. One highlight is the confidence that Murray shows in himself, despite it being his first year in the league:
“I know what I can do. I don’t think there’s anyone that can stop me on the court. That’s just a basketball player, that’s the way you gotta think. That’s the way I feel.”
It should also be noted that Jamal Murray’s signature bow and arrow celebration is on NBA 2K17:
That’s pretty sweet!
Benefit of Gary Harris’ injury?
While no one likes seeing players get hurt, Today’s Fastbreak argues that Harris’ injury will be good for Jamal Murray. The Nuggets also won’t need to rush Harris back given the added depth at shooting guard.
Most important defensive player for the Nuggets
Matt Moore of CBS Sports made a list of the most important defenders on each team, noting that “most important” is not necessarily synonymous with “best.” Who made the list for Denver? Two players, actually – Darrell Arthur and Wilson Chandler.
Jokic’s love for his hometown
FIBA wrote about Nikola Jokic’s summer, including highlights of his Olympic silver medal run and the warm reception he received upon returning to Serbia. Of note is that the basis for this article was taken from the interview done by the Stiffs Mike Olson just a few weeks ago. In case you missed it, drop what you’re doing and read part one here and part two here.
Jusuf Nurkic’s bicycle
According to the Denverite, Nurkic thinks the traffic in Denver is bad so he bought a custom bike to avoid it. Nurkic used the bike to get to and from work this summer during the offseason. Not a bad way to commute at all.
Item of the week
Tired of using brown paper bags or leftover grocery sacks to take your lunch to and from work? Want to show off to everyone in the office your love for the Nuggets? You’re in luck!
This content is no longer available.
For just a cool $62.95 on eBay it can be yours! This insulated lunch box features isolated sections so you can separate your hot and cold food and drink items, and also has an adjustable shoulder strap, soft grip handle and side mesh pockets. You will be the talk of the town with this thing, trust me.
