The Denver Nuggets have been going into their NBA battles in January handicapped by an almost unthinkable number of serious injuries. Three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and starting wing Cam Johnson both went down in late December with bone bruises that resulted from hyper-extended knees. Starting guard Christian Braun was sidelined with an ankle injury that has proven to be more significant than first thought, and starting power forward Aaron Gordon missed 19 games with a pulled hamstring that is still requiring him to take games off to rest. Nagging injuries to star guard Jamal Murray have forced him to miss a couple of games, along with illness that sidelined sixth/seventh man Tim Hardaway, Jr.
At times it looked like the Grand Rapids Gold of the G League were suiting up for Denver. It will be awhile until they’re at full strength.
Denver Finally Getting a Big Man Back
Obviously losing Jokic was the most significant blow, but losing his backup, Jonas Valančiūnas, might be second. Valančiūnas suffered a calf strain one night after Joker was injured, and it left the Nuggets without a true center for 11 games. Denver was forced to play a small lineup that got drubbed on the boards nightly. In 10 of the first 12 games the duo missed (including the games they were injured in) the Nuggets were outrebounded badly, and they could point directly at second-chance points as the reason they lost games to Charlotte and the LA Lakers.
Still, somehow, some way they won seven of those 12 games when they were “centerless” to stay in the hunt for a top four seed in the Western Conference.
Finally, Denver got some good injury news with the return of Valančiūnas for the start of a three-game eastern road trip that began in Washington. The big man got the start and made his presence felt instantly, scoring eight of Denver’s first 11 points and grabbing six first half rebounds while still playing under a minutes restriction. He finished the contest one rebound short of a double-double, with 16 points and nine boards as the Nuggets grabbed a 107-97 win. Denver won the rebounding battle 46-42.
Now the eyes of Nuggets Nation shifts to Jokic, who looked good in pre-game warmups in D.C. and is hopeful of returning early next week. There’s been nothing official from the team, but a Tuesday night home game against the east-leading Detroit Pistons has been pin pointed on the schedule as a potential return date for the All-Star.
His exhausted teammates – especially Murray – will be more than grateful when Joker returns to the court.
Other Injury News Not as Positive…Yet
The news on the other injured Nuggets isn’t has positive. It appears Braun – who has already missed 32 games – may be out for an extended period of time. What was first thought to be an ankle sprain now may have involved a ligament tear, and while Johnson – who was injured more than 10 days before Jokic and has missed 18 contests – has also been on the court doing pre-game work, he hasn’t done any contact work and his return does not appear imminent.
The Nuggets have benefited slightly from a January schedule that includes just one game against a Western Conference contender – the home loss to the Lakers. They’ve lost minimal ground in the standings, currently sitting third, just one game behind second place San Antonio.
Things could have been so much worse.
Nuggets Finally Get a Break on the Injury Front