The offseason moves made by the Denver Nuggets have set them up to be one of the best teams in the Western Conference next year, according to Charles Barkley.
Speaking with the Denver Post, the Hall of Fame forward said that, along with the Houston Rockets, Denver has the best chance to beat the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder next season.
“I think (the Nuggets) and the Houston Rockets have probably had the best summers,” Barkley said to Sean Keeler of the Denver Post. “And (the Nuggets), they’ve got the best player in the world (in Nikola Jokic). They just needed some more depth. (They’ve) still got the best player. You want to give them as many opportunities as possible. But I thought they had a great summer.”
This offseason, the Nuggets added Cam Johnson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Bruce Brown, and Jonas Valanciunas. They lost Michael Porter Jr., Dario Saric, and Russell Westbrook, but have been named some of the biggest winners of the NBA summer by multiple outlets.
Barkley’s Nuggets Praise
After winning the NBA championship in 2023, the Nuggets have lost in the second round of the playoffs in back-to-back years, with mostly the same lineup. This summer was the team’s first attempt at re-developing their roster by making the changes they did, while keeping their core of Jokic, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, and Christian Braun.
“First of all, (the Nuggets) got terrific (additions). I think they got more athletic, which they really needed to do,” Barkley said.
They lost Porter Jr., who was a key factor in their title run three seasons ago, but instead added Johnson on a much cheaper contract, who brings a bit more defensive skill to the table.
While the Thunder remain favorites to win the Finals next year, Barkley believes they can challenge the defending champions better than anyone else.
“They probably had the best chance of beating OKC (in the playoffs),” Barkley added. “It’s not like they were that far off.”
The Nuggets were the only team in the West that took the Thunder to seven games in the playoffs.
Barkley also praised the Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks as having the best summers. Houston notably added Kevin Durant along with Clint Capela and Dorian Finney-Smith, while Atlanta landed Kristaps Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Luke Kennard.
The Mile-High City’s Busy Summer
Along with their roster changes, Denver ownership made the bold move of changing head coaches and front office decision-makers at the end of the season. They fired head coach Michael Malone and general manager Calvin Booth, in their places, elevating David Adelman to coach and Ben Tenzer and Jonathan Wallace as Executive Vice Presidents.
Regardless, Barkley directed his praise towards the Nuggets’ roster decisions by adding depth and athleticism to their team.
“Because if you’re going to beat OKC and the Rockets, you’ve got to be athletic on the perimeter, especially with Durant going down there with those other guys,” Barkley said. “OKC is probably the most athletic team in the league. But like I say, they got better. And that’s all you could ask for.”
Along with trading Porter for Johnson, the Nuggets also added Brown, Hardaway, and Valanciunas on team-friendly deals. However, they will be without Westbrook after he declined his player option for next season.
Most recently, it was announced that Jokic would join Serbia’s roster for the FIBA EuroBasket tournament later this summer. He led a Serbian team that took a Steph Curry, LeBron James, and Durant-led Team USA to the brink in the semifinals of the Olympics, but finished fourth after losing to Germany in the bronze medal game.
Charles Barkley Makes Bold Claim On Nuggets And Nikola Jokic