NBA Playoffs: 1 Crucial series-changing X-Factor for every playoff team

Denver Nuggets

NBA Playoffs X-Factor: Christian Braun

As the Denver Nuggets prepare to defend their NBA title, this is a team that is going to enter the postseason as one of the favorites to come out of the Western Conference. Whether or not they're going to be as dominant as they were last year remains to be seen. But if the Nuggets have any shot of running through the West like last year, they're going to need one of their non-big-named players to step up in a big way this postseason. After losing Bruce Brown and Jeff Green during the offseason, there are serious depth questions about the Nuggets heading into the playoffs.

One player who could emerge as an x-factor for the Nuggets on that front is second-year wing Christian Braun. As a player who got some pretty good experience in the NBA playoffs last year, in which he scored 15 points in Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, he's certainly a natural candidate to have a strong postseason showing off the bench for Denver this year.

The Nuggets don't need Braun to be a huge contributor every night, but if he does have a breakout performance here and there, it can go a long way in helping the Nuggets win their second straight NBA championship.