The Denver Nuggets cracked the code in 2023. They didn’t just have the best roster in the league, but the best culture and the clearest vision for how they’d reach the top.

Their dynamic duo had unearthed their full potential together, and their glue guy, Aaron Gordon, had become the best version of himself. Flanked by an elite screen navigator and two of the best corner shooters in the world, the Nuggets were, indeed, stacked at the top of their roster.

But towards the end of that bench sat three aging veterans, who had given their lives to the game, without ever capturing that ever-elusive Larry O’Brien trophy.

Jeff Green, DeAndre Jordan, and Ish Smith all played roles of varying significance on the court, but each had earned the respect and adoration of the younger pups. When the core failed to summon their most competitive basketball, they corrected course, in self-interest, assuredly, but also for the sake of their vets.

The parties enjoyed a harmonious reciprocity. The young Nuggets learned from those who had seen and heard it all. The aging trio, well into the itinerant phase of their careers, finally experienced the highest level of team success in professional basketball.

Those vets are gone now. And so is that heralded Nuggets culture. The team looked rudderless without Aaron Gordon last season and feckless in their ultimate playoff defeat. As the once-young core embraces their 30s, they’ve lost their recipe for success.

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