NBA April Prediction: The Denver Nuggets make their push
After their improbable run to the Western Conference Finals last year, the Nuggets haven’t looked nearly as dialed in for most of this season. March was a different story though, they finished the month with an 11-3 record and capped it off by flipping Gary Harris and R.J. Hampton for Aaron Gordon, which should be the most impactful trade deadline move made by any of the top contenders.
Gordon has simultaneously become the most overrated and underrated player in the NBA over the past month or so, but the fit couldn’t be better for him in Denver. Orlando’s experiment of using Gordon more as a pick and roll ball handler had him clearly outside of his comfort zone. But in Denver, he’ll get to leave that behind and focus on spot-up shooting, decision making in the short role as a screener, and cutting off-ball while Nikola Jokic works in the post – all things he should be pretty good at on his new team.
Gordon was eager to get out of Orlando, but Denver has to be equally excited to get him on their roster. They’ve really missed having a reliable forward, especially defensively, since Jerami Grant went to Detroit in the offseason. Gordon will bring some similar tertiary scoring as well as a good amount of much-needed defensive versatility to a team that can be prone to some really tough stretches on that end.
Nikola Jokic is going to be amazing no matter what, but the Nuggets will go as far as the supporting cast can take them and that group got a lot better this week. Look for the Nuggets to keep climbing up the standings while Jokic solidifies his MVP bid. Someone has to win it, right?