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The Denver Nuggets just kept chipping away on Monday night. They defeated a plucky Miami Heat squad four games to one to win the NBA title and the city’s first pro basketball championship.
Hundreds of thousands of fans will jam into downtown Denver at 10 AM (Mountain Time) Thursday morning to celebrate the Nuggets’ first NBA title during a parade which concludes with a victory celebration rally at the Civic Center.
Enjoy it, Denver! You have been waiting for this moment for a very long time.
Denver’s professional basketball era started in 1967 as one of the founding franchises of the American Basketball Association (ABA).
Nine years and zero titles later, the Denver Nuggets were then merged into the NBA in 1976. Monday night’s Game 5 close-out win over Miami ended Denver’s lengthy 47 (or 56?) year professional basketball title drought.
The Nuggets’ 94-89 victory at home in Game 5 was a very ugly game. The inconsistent officiating crew certainly didn’t help matters. The refs allowed both teams to push and shove each other like a pro wrestling match. At other times, some of the players’ Academy Award-worthy flops and fakery drew a number of phantom fouls whistled by this incredibly inept officiating crew.
In Game 5, the players were bad. The refs were worse. Denver’s home crowd remained on pins and needles throughout.
Denver converted just 5 of 28 3-point shots (18%) in Monday night’s season finale. The Nuggets made just 13 of 23 free throw attempts – which came without any Miami Heat players around to affect their shots.
Miami wasn’t much better in Game 5. Miami clanked 26 3-point attempts to go with just nine successful threes for a woeful 25.7% on its long distance shooting. After being outrebounded 57-44 by Denver, Miami was somehow hanging on by a thread until the final minutes of Game 5.
The NBA refs gifted the Heat a late chance to pull within one point with three minutes left on a highly questionable call.
During a three point attempt by Jimmy Butler, the forward kicked a Denver’s Aaron Gordon in the – ouch – “nuggets” as Butler released his shot. The referees surprised 20,000 fans and a national TV audience by whistling a foul – against Denver???
After Denver challenged the call, television replays clearly showed that Butler was the only one who made contact with another player. Yet, the NBA referees steadfastly refused to overturn this obvious blunder.
In the end, it didn’t matter. Denver was clearly the better team.
The Miami Heat came into the NBA Finals as the Eastern Conference #8 seed. Miami’s disciplined team effort and better-than-average three point shooting (in most playoff games) powered the Heat past three consecutive favored teams. Milwaukee, the New York Knicks, and the Boston Celtics were outcoached by Miami’s Eric Spoelstra as his team exploited the weaknesses of his opponents.
The Denver Nuggets were easily the best team in the NBA Western Conference. They were the West #1 playoff seed. The Nuggets were just better than Miami in every facet of the game during this series. Miami was fortunate to grab even one win in this series. Denver finished 16-4 in the NBA playoffs in winning both high and low scoring games.
Denver’s dynamic duo of center Nikola Jokic and guard Jamal Murray led a team effort throughout the playoffs. The Nuggets other starters and bench contributed key points, rebounds, and hustle plays in every playoff game. Coach Michael Malone kept the team focused on the mission.
In a nutshell, the Denver Nuggets have all the makings of a dynasty.
The team is comprised of under-30 players in their prime. The bench is filled with talent and role players. The coach already told the jubilant Denver crowd after the game that he wants this team to repeat in 2024.
Why not? The Denver Nuggets will return nearly every key player next season.
This team reminds me of the Tim Duncan-era San Antonio Spurs.
During his 19 years in the NBA, the Spurs won five NBA titles. Like Tim “The Big Fundamental” Duncan, Denver’s Nikola Jokic quietly dominates other teams by his keen court awareness and relentless (but effortless) offensive and defensive skills.
A former second round draft pick, Jokic led the NBA Finals in scoring. Incredibly, this 2-time league MVP also led both teams in rebounding and assists, too. He became the first player in NBA history to accomplish that trifecta in the NBA Finals.
Guard Jamal Murray returned to the Nuggets in November, 2022 after an 18 month recovery from a devastating knee injury in early 2021.
His return sparked Denver’s runaway performance in the NBA Western Conference this season.
Having home court advantage with Denver’s 5,280 foot altitude becomes doubly difficult for visitors to deal with. Miami’s Game 2 victory in Denver was the Nuggets’ only home loss in this year’s playoffs. The Nuggets went 10-1 on their home court during the 2023 playoffs en route to their first NBA title.
Which NBA Western Conference team is most likely to challenge Denver next season?
Let’s take a look at the NBA West challengers and what they need to change to take down the Nuggets next season:
Memphis Grizzlies – Don’t laugh. Memphis was the #2 seed in the NBA Western Conference this year. The team is well coached, but the Griz’ top player can’t seem to keep himself from getting into trouble off the court. Ja Morant (and his personal immaturity) will torpedo the chances of Memphis next season. He will be suspended for a rather lengthy period at the start of next season. This team is likely on its way back down.
Sacramento Kings – The Kings’ improvement surprised a lot of people this season. The #3 seed in the West resembles Denver with its two most skilled players. Guard De’Andre Fox and center Domantas Sabonis are the leading scorers and play unselfishly. The Kings lack the defensive presence of Denver, though. Sacto is the highest scoring team in the NBA (nearly 121 points per game), but the Kings gave up 118 per night on defense (ranking 25th out of 30 teams). The Kings need to improve their rebounding (#20 in the NBA). They could use a selfless rebounding forward. Hello, Draymond Green?
Phoenix Suns – Any team which has two solid NBA All-Stars like forward Kevin Durant (27 points per game) and guard Devin Booker (28 ppg) is a potential challenger for Denver. In fact, the #4 West seed Phoenix currently has a good center in Deandre Ayton (18 ppg and 10 rebounds/game) and a veteran (but oft-injured) point guard in Chris Paul on the roster.
Phoenix is a classic case where there are simply too many mouths to feed on the court. Each of the players mentioned like the basketball to be in their own hands. Phoenix has already told Chris Paul to pack his bags (destination unknown as of today). Center Deandre Ayton (who just completed the first year of his new 4-year contract extension) has been a highly discussed player for a possible trade. Dallas and Portland are today’s hot rumors. Phoenix needs to acquire more contributing role players to compete with Denver. I believe this is the team which might be best equipped to challenge the Nuggets in 2024.
Los Angeles Clippers – The #5 West seed has a hard time keeping their two primary stars, 33-year old guard Paul George and 31-year old forward Kawhi Leonard, on the court together due to recurring injuries. The Clippers really don’t have a center in their rotation to combat any opponent which has a talented big man (such as Denver). This team is stuck in neutral and is not a threat next season.
Golden State Warriors – The NBA champion just one year ago, the Warriors are starting to age rather quickly. Like the Clippers, Golden State struggles whenever an opponent’s dominating big man controls the middle. The Warriors finished with the #6 seed in 2023. They still have guards Stephen Curry (now 35!) and Klay Thompson (33 years old). Golden State has enjoyed a great run, but don’t be surprised if this team starts to shed players (and salaries) in the off-season.
Los Angeles Lakers – The Lakers were fortunate to even win the #7 seed in the NBA Western Conference. They finished just four games above .500. The team barely scored more points per game than they surrendered on defense. LeBron James is now 38 years old. He remains (generally) productive as long as the refs allow him to steamroll over defenders as he bullies his way to the basket. Anthony Davis is an excellent player, but he is prone to fade into the background too easily at times. The Lakers need a legitimate and mature point guard. Chris Paul (if healthy and at half the price of his current $30 million salary) could be a good fit here. Don’t count on it.
In summary, Denver’s primary Western Conference challengers have their work cut out for them to compete with this year’s champion in 2024. The Nuggets have the look of a potential NBA dynasty just like Golden State and San Antonio did over the past two decades.
These Nuggets could be golden for years to come!