The Denver Nuggets are coming off of a 2018-19 campaign in which they won 54 games and were bounced out of the second round of the playoffs by the Portland Trail Blazers, and now, the future looks bright.
The Nuggets are an incredibly young team led by do-it-all center Nikola Jokic and a couple of really solid guards in Jamal Murray and Gary Harris, and with really impressive youngsters like Malik Beasley, Monte Morris and Juan Hernangomez off the bench, this Denver squad is teeming with talent all across the board.
The Nuggets didn't do much this offseason, but they did make one really nice move, swinging a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for versatile wing Jerami Grant, giving them even more length and versatility.
But otherwise, Denver largely stood pat.
So, here are the three biggest offseason takeaways for the Nuggets:
3. They Probably Should Have Added More Shooting
Grant shot 39 percent from three-point range this past season, and that's definitely really solid, but based on the fact that the Nuggets ranked just 18th in the league in three-point percentage this year, they probably should have added one more shooter.
Now, to be fair, Denver could be banking on a healthier Harris next season and could also be expecting Murray, who was known for his perimeter shooting ability coming out of college, to be more consistent from downtown.
But still, you would have figured the Nuggets would have tried to add at least one other shooter other than Grant this summer.
Maybe they will still do just that, or maybe some of their current players will be better from distance next season.
2. They Got Even Deeper
One thing that the Nuggets have that most other contending teams don't at the moment is depth.
Denver is an incredibly deep squad, and by adding Grant, it got even deeper. Let's also remember that Michael Porter Jr., the Nuggets' first-round pick of a year ago, is probably going to play at some point this season.
Porter was considered the consensus No. 1 overall talent going into the 2017-18 NCAA season, but a back injury caused his stock to plummet.
Still, the talent remains, so if Porter can get healthy and stay healthy, he will add another dimension to what is already a very deep and talented Nuggets club.
Basically, Denver comes at you in waves, and if history is any indication, depth wins titles.
1. They Didn't Need any Big Moves
While I did bemoan the fact that the Nuggets didn't add another shooter, that is really the only thing to complain about pertaining to Denver's offseason.
The fact of the matter is that the Nuggets didn't really need to make any big moves and can simply hope that their young talent continues to improve and that the playoff experience will drive them next season.
While Denver is certainly behind the Los Angeles Clippers right now, the Nuggets could still end up being the second-best team in the Western Conference, as they are deeper than the Los Angeles Lakers and aren't integrating a ton of new pieces like the Utah Jazz.
With the Golden State Warriors' dynasty over, the West is right there for the taking, and Denver will be one of the teams vying for the throne.
Do I still think the Nuggets need more? Yes, because I'm not sure they have a true No. 2 guy on their roster, but we have to find out first.
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