For a team that has reached the Western Conference Finals and Semifinals over the past two seasons, it seems unusual for the Denver Nuggets to cling to a top-six berth this season. Reigning MVP Nikola Jokic is arguably performing better than his MVP campaign last year, but his teammates have struggled with the major injuries to stars Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr.

With the returns of Murray and Porter Jr. still uncertain, the Nuggets are categorized as a dark horse contender for the upcoming playoffs. On the right matchup, they could upset a more talented bunch, but they also easily lose any game if Jokic is contained and the role players do not contribute sufficiently. It will be an ironic situation for the Nuggets fanbase in the next few weeks, so these are the teams they must prefer to match up against.

Most favorable Nuggets opponents in the first round, ranked

Golden State Warriors (3rd)

Despite the injuries ravaging the continuity and chemistry of the Golden State Warriors, they still have the foundation and culture they rely on at the biggest stage. Stephen Curry is due to return before the first round, while Klay Thompson and Draymond Green could easily regain their peak form and become close to unbeatable. Conversely, there are just five guys with massive playoff experience for Golden State, so Denver could pounce on that weakness.

With their young guns only scratching the surface of their potential in the playoffs, it will also be tough for them to develop chemistry on the fly. With this transition still being enhanced by coach Steve Kerr, Denver could take an early 2-1 or 2-0 advantage in a series, which could be a huge advantage for them against the Warriors. Moreover, the Warriors are the squad with the least size and options to throw at Jokic in a seven-game series.

Dallas Mavericks (2nd)

Similar to Golden State, the Dallas Mavericks have a depleted big man rotation with the recent departure of Kristaps Porzingis. That could pose a ton of issues when defending Jokic and unlocking his passing ability, but they have a generational talent on their roster as well in Luka Doncic. The glaring difference between Dallas and Golden State is the repetitions and games played together in this current iteration of their respective lineups.

Coach Jason Kidd has implemented a flourishing defensive environment that is vastly different from previous seasons. The small-lineup combination makes it enticing to attack the rim with the lack of size, but Kidd knows how to execute the help defense and terrific anticipation of his guys. Those aspects are very integral in neutralizing Jokic's strengths and possibly catapulting them to reaching the West Semifinals with Doncic as their leader.

Utah Jazz (1st)

The team the Nuggets have come back from 1-3 down two years ago, the Utah Jazz are likely headed for their last hurrah this postseason. It does not sound pleasing in Salt Lake, especially after the 25-point comeback win of the Los Angeles Clippers last Tuesday night. Donovan Mitchell expressed his continuous frustration with the lack of consistent performances, while French center Rudy Gobert has had trouble imposing his will against Jokic.

Even without Murray, who torched them for eye-popping numbers in the bubble, the Nuggets could still win in four out of seven games because of the sheer dominance of Jokic. When he gets cooking, he becomes even more dangerous when defenses force him to give up the ball because the cutters and floor spacers receive the easiest shots they could get.

It would be insurmountable for Denver to position themselves against any of these three organizations in a series, but the priority must be to not fall to seventh place. As this happens, it would help them mature to a more lethal squad come playoff time and possibly shock the world with some upsets at the biggest stage for the Jokic-led Nuggets.