The injuries are adding up for the Denver Nuggets. Aaron Gordon will miss at least 4-6 weeks with a grade 2 right hamstring strain that he suffered in Houston. It’s the second starter they’ve lost in the last two weeks. Christian Braun is already out on a similar timeline with a left ankle sprain. Julian Strawther has also missed time with back pain.
Gordon had been on the injury report with bilateral hamstring management, an issue that popped up early in the season. He did not play against the New Orleans Pelicans on the 19th as a precautionary measure. His hamstrings have been an area of concern since the last postseason, when he famously played through a grade 2 strain (left) in Game 7 against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Gordon was off to a great start in the new campaign. He’s averaging 18.8 points while shooting 44.4% from 3 on 4.8 attempts per game, putting him on track for the highest scoring and most efficient season of his career. Without his scoring and physicality, the Nuggets are a noticeably different team.
“AG, especially when we play against the smaller lineups, he’s a really good low-post player,” Nikola Jokić said after losing to the Sacramento Kings. “He just puts a lot of pressure on the defense. And offensively, he is shooting the ball really, really well. And defensively, he’s probably one of the best, if not the best — him and CB are really good defenders.”
The Nuggets spent their offseason bolstering their depth, but that depth has already been whittled down. David Adelman started the two-way product Spencer Jones in Denver’s loss to the Kings. And in the first quarter, he turned to Hunter Tyson for some unexpected minutes. Tyson typically plays in garbage time.
“We’re going through this process with three guys out,” Adelman explained after the loss. “We played Jalen (Pickett) a little bit. We started him. Zeke (Nnaji) started in New Orleans. I wanted to give Hunter a little bit of run as we go through this…I can’t play an 8 1/2 man rotation every night, so I’ll get creative with it as best I can.”
As Adelman gets creative, we can expect to see lots of Jones. Peyton Watson is already the designated replacement for Braun, but that also eats into the team’s frontcourt depth. Watson was the backup power forward and has spot-started for Gordon in the past.
Jones will have to play heavier minutes one way or another. He’s already made a believer out of his head coach.
“I have nothing but full confidence in him,” Adelman said after Jones struggled in his start. “The way he moves his feet and competes, and these great, great players he’s guarded in the last 10 days, two weeks. That’s how you learn. Got to go out there and do it.”
Jones may continue starting. Adelman might also try Tim Hardaway Jr. at shooting guard, with Watson filling in as a forward — both players started in a road win over the Minnesota Timberwolves this season.
Regardless of who starts, the rotation will be strained, and the Nuggets will lean heavily on Jamal Murray and Jokić. Capable as they are, the plan was to ask less of them in the regular season, having assembled a more balanced roster to ease the burden. They don’t have that luxury now.
So much for the depth, and so much for an alleviated workload up top. Without Gordon, the Nuggets will have to dig deeper than anyone hoped. The fun start to a new year is in the rearview mirror. Buckle up, because it’s going to get bumpy in the coming month.
