Meet the Summer League Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets head to Las Vegas later this week for NBA Summer League with a roster full of intrigue and expectations. Here’s who the Nuggets are bringing with them to the showcase.

Denver’s first Summer League practice is Monday morning.

Projected Starting 5

Guard: Collin Gillespie (6-foot-3, 190 lbs, last team: Denver Nuggets)

Gillespie signed a two-way contract with the Nuggets last summer after an illustrious career at Villanova but missed all of last year after fracturing his leg during an offseason workout. He was around the team all season, at practices, on road trips, and in the locker room, and now gets his chance to show that he’s recovered from the injury and has improved as a player. Last Summer League, Gillespie was intriguing. He averaged 11.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists across four games.

Guard: Jalen Pickett (6-foot-4, 202 lbs, last team: Penn State)

Pickett’s one of three Nuggets 2023 draft picks that will be suiting up in Vegas. The 23-year-old (he’ll be 24 in October) is older than Zeke Nnaji and Christian Braun and comes to Denver with a mature and refined game. With Bruce Brown leaving in free agency, Pickett could eventually be tasked to soak up some of the now-available minutes that don’t go to backup point guard Reggie Jackson. A strong Summer League would be the first step in making that happen.

Guard: Julian Strawther (6-foot-7, 205 lbs, last team: Gonzaga)

The Nuggets’ top draft pick should slot in Denver’s Summer League starting lineup and will be ready to let it fly from 3. Strawther was one of the better 3-point shooters in last year’s draft class and will have the green light in Vegas.

Forward: Peyton Watson (6-foot-8, 200 lbs, last team: Denver Nuggets)

Watson is the top storyline at Summer League from a Nuggets perspective. He impressed in spot minutes late last season and enters the offseason with the ability to lock down a rotation spot for next year, especially with Jeff Green leaving Denver in free agency. Watson should dominate in Las Vegas. If he does, it would clear up a lot of the anxiety surrounding the Nuggets’ bench.

Center: Ismael Kamagate (6-foot-11, 220 lbs, last team: Paris Basketball)

Kamagate, the Nuggets’ second-round pick in 2022, just signed a new contract in Europe and isn’t likely to play for Denver next season. I guess that could change if he looks like Shaq at Summer League, but I think the Nuggets want to develop him right and eventually bring him over once he’s ready for actual rotation minutes. That’s at least what I’ve been told. He had some bright moments at Summer League last year.

Off the Bench

Hunter Tyson (6-foot-8, 215 lbs, last team: Clemson)

The third of the Nuggets’ three 2023 draft picks, Tyson should excel in Vegas. He has a motor that never stops running and shoots the 3. That’s a perfect Summer League formula.

Grant Golden (6-foot-10, 255 lbs, last team: Grand Rapids Gold)

Golden played off the bench for the Nuggets’ Summer League team in 2022, then suited up for Denver’s G League affiliate last season, and is back for another cycle this year. Golden can do a little bit of everything as a center: Score inside, rebound and pass. He had four double-digit assist games for the Gold last year and one triple-double.

Armaan Franklin (6-foot-4, 195 lbs, last team: Virginia)

Franklin comes to Denver after a four-year college career (two years at Indiana and two years at Virginia). A former four-star recruit out of Indianapolis, he averaged 12.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in the ACC last season. Franklin has a long wingspan, a decent all-around offensive game, and is an active and willing defender.

Andrew Funk (6-foot-5, 188 lbs, last team: Penn State)

Funk sunk 112 3-pointers last season at Penn State. Many of those came off assists from his college teammate, Jalen Pickett. Funk is a shooter first and foremost and started 113 games across his five-year college career.

Cassius Stanley (6-foot-5, 190 lbs, last team: Rio Grande Valley Vipers)

The Indiana Pacers’ former 2020 second-round pick re-emerges with the Nuggets’ Summer League team as he looks to break back into the NBA after spending last season in the G League. Stanley, a former four-star recruit out of Los Angeles, attended Duke for one season, then declared for the draft. With the Pacers, Stanley competed in the 2021 Dunk Contest but was eliminated after the first round.

Aamir Sims (6-foot-8, 245 lbs, last team: Paris Basketball)

Sims played for Paris Basketball last season and was teammates with Ismael Kamagate. Before that, he spent four seasons at Clemson where he shared a locker room with Hunter Tyson. Last season he averaged 13.1 points on solid shooting splits (52.1 FG%, 43.6 3P%), 5.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game. He’s got a good-looking 3-point shot. Reminds you of a poor man’s PJ Tucker.

Mark Smith (6-foot-5, 220 lbs, last team: BG Gottingen)

Smith was once considered a major league baseball pitching prospect out of high school with a fastball that clocked in the 90’s but switched his full-time focus to basketball in college. He played at Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas State before taking his talents abroad last year to BG Gottingen in Germany. Smith is a big, girthy guard who averaged 16.2 points (36.4 3P%), 6.9 rebounds, and 2.9 assists last season. He’s got a quick trigger from 3. Shades of a taller Markus Howard.

Taz Sherman (6-foot-4, 190 lbs, last team: Budapesti Honved )

Sherman played last season in Hungary where he averaged 15.8 points and shot 41.6% from 3. He’s a lead guard who can play out of the pick-and-roll and excels attacking the basket.