NBA Report Cards: Celtics pass with flying colors; Warriors lack an identity

Denver Nuggets

Regular season grade: A

As the defending NBA champions, I don't think there were many that were expecting the Denver Nuggets to be full throttle all season long. That was very much the case this season, but what you have to admire most about the Nuggets is that they never fully let up the gas in the regular season. And over the last few weeks, the Nuggets have begun to flip the playoff switch in hopes of finishing with the No. 1 seed and the Western Conference standings. This is a team that is playing at a high level and if they can remain healthy, the Nuggets are going to have a great chance to win it all again this season.

When it comes to just the regular season, you have to give the Nuggets an "A" grade. There's not much more Denver could've - or needed - done in the regular season to justify themselves. Nikola Jokic could be on the verge of winning another NBA MVP award and they might be playing better at this point in the season than they were last year.

Heading into the NBA Playoffs, that should be a scary sight for the rest of the Western Conference.