Less than 18 months removed from winning their first NBA championship in franchise history, the Denver Nuggets are apparently at a crossroads. Michael Porter Jr. touched on that jarring reality, stating that the team's core could inevitably be modified if it fails to attain another Larry O'Brien Trophy this season. The departure of key supporting players, including Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, makes repeating such a task quite grueling.
Most champion front offices are faced with the dilemma of saving money to extend the squad's best players or bringing back the key contributors whose impact exceeds their stat line. Failure to identify which individuals fall under that latter category, or showing the inability to re-sign them, can quickly diminish an organization's once wide-open title window.
The Nuggets lost an understated yet valuable piece of their identity when Bruce Brown Jr. and Jeff Green departed ahead of the 2023-24 season, but the loss of Caldwell-Pope this past summer could be what decisively costs this group another championship. It is too early to make those proclamations of course, but fans are lamenting the defensive-minded veteran's exit regardless.
Their disappointment is only going to be compounded by his latest comments about his decision to sign with the Orlando Magic after spending two years in Denver.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes an interesting admission
“It was hard,” Caldwell-Pope said, per Andscape's Marc J. Spears. “We gave {the Nuggets} the opportunity, but things happen.. I let my agent, Rich Paul, handle all that. But my agent always told me, ‘This is a business at the end of the day.’ I got to figure out what’s going to make me happy, what fits best for me and my family.”
The No. 8 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft inked a three-year, $66 million contract with Orlando in July, a sizable commitment that was difficult for Denver to match since it was already above the first tax apron. Though, many would urge ownership to maximize Nikola Jokic's prime and the starting five's collective greatness by investing in a supplemental piece like Caldwell-Pope.
Instead, the Nuggets are banking on Russell Westbrook to provide a secondary punch, along with the toughness the former SEC Player of the Year brought to the Mile High City. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope is trying to find his footing in Orlando during the early portion of the season, but his importance should quickly grow now that All-Star Paolo Banchero is set to miss four to six weeks with a torn oblique. The Magic would be wise to lean on his leadership during this time of adversity.
How will Nuggets and Magic fare after their key offseason decisions?
The two-time champ will not face his former team until Jan. 19 in the Kia Center. It figures to be an emotional night for him, as he is a member of an exclusive group of people who helped Denver finally hang up a championship banner.
“I was part of the first [Nuggets title] in almost like 40-something years,” Caldwell-Pope said. “Of, course everybody that was on that team that year is going to be a part of that championship going down in history. It’s just always a blessing and I’m thankful just to be a part of stuff like that and to also play a major role in it.”
While the Nuggets (2-2) try to exorcise their most recent postseason demons in Friday's showdown with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the shorthanded Magic (3-2) hope to survive the undefeated Cleveland Cavaliers. The events of last offseason will remain pertinent as fans track the current journeys of these respective franchises.
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