2014-15 NBA Season Preview: Denver Nuggets

Welcome to theScore's preview of the 2014-15 Denver Nuggets. Visit our preseason hub for previews of all 30 NBA teams.

Denver Nuggets

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2013-14

Last season was nothing short of a huge disappointment for the Denver Nuggets.

Things couldn't have looked rosier for the Nuggets following the 2012-13 season. Even though they were upset in the first round of the playoffs, the team set a franchise-high in wins with 57 and held a wealth of cap space. They also boasted the reigning Coach and Executive of the Year in George Karl and Masai Ujiri, respectively.

As it turned out, last offseason was a summer of disaster, as the Nuggets shed Karl, Ujiri, and shutdown defender Andre Iguodala. Their replacements fared poorly, and coupled with a rash of major injuries, the Nuggets missed the playoffs for the first time in eleven seasons.

But there's a case to be made for an impending rebound. Forward Danilo Gallinari is recovering nicely from knee surgery, and Kenneth Faried shined for Team USA at the FIBA World Cup. Those two, along with point guard Ty Lawson, have the young Nuggets projected to improve in the upcoming season.

Offseason Roundup

In comparison to previous offseasons, the Nuggets' summer was rather tame. That may be a positive as their last spending spree saw general manager Tim Connelly blow most of Denver's cap space and flexibility.

Connelly's prize haul this offseason is a familiar face in Arron Afflalo, who returns to Denver after two seasons in Orlando. As the Magic struggled, Afflalo quietly shined, averaging a career-high 18.2 points and 3.4 assists last season. He connected on 42.7 percent of his three-pointers, and should slot in nicely as the Nuggets' starting two-guard.

Additions

SG/SF Arron Afflalo (trade)

Departures

PG Aaron Brooks (free agency)
SG Evan Fournier (trade)
PF Anthony Randolph (trade)
PF Jan Vesely (free agenc8y)

2014 Draft

C Jusuf Nurkic (1st round, 19th overall)
SG Gary Harris (1st round, 16th overall)
PF/C Nikola Jokic (2nd round, 41st overall)

The Nuggets originally held the 11th pick and selected forward Doug McDermott, but a draft-day deal saw him flipped to the Chicago Bulls for the 16th and 19th picks, which were spent on Nurkic and Harris.

Nurkic is a bruising center who surprisingly jumped to the NBA right away. The 20-year-old Bosnian stands at 7-foot, 280 pounds and has the size and potential to develop into a Nikola Pekovic-type player. At this point, Nurkic is a raw prospect who averaged just 8.9 points competing in the Eurocup last year, but he's still young.

Harris, on the other hand, is a 20-year-old, game-ready sharpshooter. He averaged 16.7 points on 50.7 percent shooting from the field last season at Michigan State, and projects to be a reliable spot-up threat. The Nuggets are well stocked on the wing at the moment, but a few trades could open up opportunities for Harris to play a more prominent role.

Starting 5

• PG Ty Lawson
• SG Arron Afflalo
• SF Danilo Gallinari
• PF Kenneth Faried
• C JaVale McGee

Breakout Player: Kenneth Faried

After garnering plenty of praise and hype after his first two seasons in the NBA, Faried started slowly last year after being initially miscast in Nuggets' head coach Brian Shaw's offensive scheme. 

But the two eventually found a role that worked. Over the final two months of the season, Faried flourished in a more up-tempo, free-flowing attack, as seen in the chart below. It was an encouraging sign of growth for Faried and of long-term fit for Shaw's system.

Faried's production carried over onto the international stage this summer, where he was named to the FIBA World Cup all-tournament team after featuring prominently for the gold-medal-winning Team USA. The Manimal surprised many with his inclusion and appreciable role on the team, but his hustle and defense helped set the tone for the eventual champions. Faried averaged 12.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in the tournament.

If a late-season surge and an impressive summer can be considered bellwethers, Faried is in for one heck of a 2014-15.

Season Expectations

Outside of the handful of legitimate title contenders, it's hard for any team in the Western Conference to expect a playoff appearance. The Nuggets project to be much better than last season by virtue of improved health, but that doesn't guarantee a return to the postseason.

Denver's biggest strengths will be its superlative depth and significant home-court advantage. The Nuggets are two-deep at every position, and there's a case to be made that their projected bench unit (Nate Robinson, Randy Foye, Wilson Chandler, J.J. Hickson and Timofey Mozgov) ranks among the best in the league.

However, injuries are a concern, and the team does lack a true star. Lawson is the closest thing the Nuggets have to an All-Star quality player, but his shooting percentages have steadily declined since his rookie season. There's also concerns on the defensive end, as a mostly ground-bound Mozgov is the Nuggets' best defender, which presents a problem in the highly-competitive Western Conference.

1 to Follow on Social Media

As with their team structure, the Nuggets don't have a true social media superstar, only a handful of solid tweeters.

Lawson is a good choice. He recently took a swipe at Houston Rockets guard James Harden for his defensive negligence. Nate Robinson is also a solid choice as his Instagram game is on point. Toss JaVale McGee (a.k.a. Pierre) a follow if you want your timeline to be flooded with pictures of him living the #JUGLYFE.