After recently becoming plagued by the injury bug, the Denver Nuggets are facing what could be a season-defining stretch.
First it was Gary Harris. Just minutes into a game against the Toronto Raptors, the 24-year-old starting shooting guard left the game with a hip injury. Two weeks later and this key piece to a pleasantly surprising Nuggets team is still sitting on the sidelines.
Just four days after Harris' injury, Paul Millsap was forced to leave a game against the Charlotte Hornets. Team doctors found that Millsap had fractured his right big toe. The veteran power forward will miss at least the rest of December and he may not see the floor until well into January.
So how does the first place team in the Western Conference respond to two injuries to starters in the span of four days? Well, in Denver's case, they keep on winning.
The Nuggets have won three straight games defeating the Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder, and Toronto Raptors.
The Nuggets bench has done a fine job of stepping up and replacing Harris and Millsap's production. Since Harris went down, Torrey Craig has slid into the starting role and performed admirably.
His defense has been inspired and impactful and he has rebounded the ball at a strong clip for a shooting guard. While his offense has left something to be desired, Craig has played within himself on that end—not forcing bad shots or turning over the basketball.
Like Craig, big man Mason Plumlee has done a great job on the defensive end and on the glass since taking over for the injured Millsap. Plumlee plays extremely well next to Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic. The two bigs have a +16.4 net rating this season when they share the court together.
Plumlee does a nice job of assisting Jokic on the defensive end, while Jokic's unique offensive versatility allows for Plumlee to coexist with Jokic when the Nuggets have the ball.
Nikola Jokic has taken his team to the next level this year with his All-NBA level performances on a game-to-game basis.
Jokic has led the Denver Nuggets in scoring, rebounding, and assists in each of their last four games. In those four games, the Nuggets are 3-1 and just beat the team with the best record in the NBA, the Toronto Raptors. Jokic is posting averages of 17.7 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 7.5 APG, and 1.4 STL.
Denver's star center might be the best passing big man the game has ever seen. His floor vision and advanced ball-handling skills for someone his size makes him a mismatch for basically any team they play. Not since Arvydas Sabonis has their been a man Jokic's size who could pass, dribble, and shoot like Jokic can.
Looking ahead, the Nuggets next four games are against the Dallas Mavericks, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the San Antonio Spurs twice. If they can continue to weather the storm until they're healthy, it will go a long way in their pursuit to hold off the rest of the Western Conference for a top 3 seed.
It may seem silly to refer to such a short stretch of games as season-defining, but in the Western Conference this year it very well may be. The Nuggets currently hold the top spot in the conference but they only have a 4.5 game lead on 9th place. They also only have a 7 game lead on 14th place.
The conference has appeared weaker at the top this year and deeper than ever. The 14th seeded Jazz were considered by most to be a near lock to make the playoffs. They're still very much in striking distance despite the rough start.
Teams like the Mavericks, Kings, Clippers, and Grizzlies have emerged as legitimate playoff contenders despite being doubted by many before the start of the season. The Warriors, Rockets, Jazz, and Pelicans have all underperformed by their own expectations and by the expectations of the media.
The combination of these two realities creates a highly competitive playoff race that might feature a combination of eight teams that nearly nobody predicted.
The Nuggets must capitalize on this parity. They have a real chance to separate themselves as being among the league's elite while the rest of the West jockeys for position. First, they have to keep the ship sailing steady until the team is back at full strength.
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