It's officially time to start believing in the Nuggets again

Do you remember what it felt like when the Nuggets traded for Aaron Gordon in March of 2021?

March 28: Nuggets beat the Hawks 126-102 in Gordon’s debut

Gordon finished with 13 points on 6-9 shooting. Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. combined for 48 points on 20-35 (57%) shooting.

“I see no limits for this team,” Gordon said postgame that night. “It looks like we have all the pieces for this team, we have depth. We’re covered in a lot of different spots. As long as we’re working together there’s no stopping us.”

March 30: Nuggets beat the 76ers 104-95

Playing in front of fans for the first time since the pandemic started, Denver outscored Philadelphia 44-24 in the first quarter and coasted to a win.

Michael Porter Jr. was turning into Klay Thompson and only used only four dribbles to score 27 points.

April 1: Nuggets beat the Clippers 101-94

The Nuggets handed out 28 assists on their 39 made baskets to beat the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard.

Michael Malone said his players seemed rejuvenated and he sensed a “renewed excitement” after the Gordon trade. “You can feel it in the locker room.”

“We feel like we’re complete,” said Will Barton. “We feel like this is the team. We feel like we have enough to go all the way…(a championship) is definitely our goal. We can’t shy away from it. We can’t run from it.”

April 4: Nuggets beat the Magic 119-109

Denver came out lax but outscored Orlando 72-44 in the second half to get its fourth-straight win. Gordon had 24 points on 10-13 shooting and 7 rebounds. Jokic had 17 points, 9 rebounds and 16 assists. Porter Jr. added 20 points on and 12 rebounds on 8-14 shooting. Murray had 22 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists.

“It’s a testament to where this team can go,” Gordon said that night regarding the comeback.

The Nuggets went on to win their first seven games following the Gordon trade. With Jokic, Murray, Porter Jr. and Gordon on the floor, Denver outscored its opponent by 46 points in 117 minutes. That quartet produced a 126.4 Offensive Rating, a 108.2 Defensive Rating and an 18.2 Net Rating when on the court together. They scored, defended, rebounded, assisted and played basketball at a ridiculously high level. Then…Denver then lost at home vs. the Celtics on April 11th and then again at the Warriors one night later when Jamal Murray tore his ACL.

But if you remember the two weeks after that Gordon trade right up until the waning moments that night in Golden State, you remember the feeling you had while watching this team. You remember the excitement following the all-in trade deadline move made by the Nuggets’ front office. You remember the ease at which the Nuggets’ offense flowed. You remember how it felt like Denver could get a layup or open three every single trip down the floor. You remember the efficiency, the versatility, the two-way play that Denver packed. You remember thinking that the Nuggets finally had all the pieces.

You remember thinking about a championship.

For the first time in 18 months, you can think those same thoughts again. Murray is back. So is Porter Jr. With Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, the Nuggets have arguably the best starting five in the league. Gordon, Caldwell-Pope and Bruce Brown give Denver more top-tier defensive options than the Nuggets have had in recent memory. This is by far the most complete team that I’ve seen in Denver in the Jokic era.

Tonight is just preseason game No. 1. Denver still has a long way to go just to begin to achieve the lofty goals that this group has set for itself. But tonight is when the foundation for this season begins to get laid. This is when the Jokic-Murray-Porter trio first begin to re-establishes the chemistry that they were quickly building in 2021. This is when Gordon, Caldwell-Pope, Brown, Bones Hyland and Denver’s role players start to mesh. This is when Malone begins to learn what this group actually looks like on the floor.

Nuggets-Thunder from Ball Arena tips at 7 pm local time. It’s the first time in 18 months that Jokic, Murray, Porter Jr. and Gordon could all be on the floor together.

At training camp in San Diego, those same feelings that we all felt post-trade deadline in 2021 resurfaced. There’s this quiet confidence around the Nuggets right now that has you thinking big. The Nuggets are walking with a strut and a swagger. There’s a level of maturity to this team right now that I’ve never seen before. There’s a sense of poise and readiness for the task that awaits.

“It’s a different vibe,” Gordon said last week. “I think we’ve got some of our guys back. We got [Murray] back. I think that’s kind of what picks the vibe up. Level of excitement, we’re always excited. I’m always excited. We’re always excited. But for me, there’s a certain level of calmness, just because we have so many great guys on this team. We have such a talented roster. You can lean on your brothers on this team. That is bringing me a certain level of peace.”

This Nuggets team has everything needed to win a championship. It has the star power in Jokic. It has the supporting cast in Murray, Porter Jr. and Gordon. It has the championship-caliber role players in Caldwell-Pope and Brown that every contender needs. It has the veterans in Jeff Green and DeAndre Jordan to tie this group together. It has an experienced head coach who’s been through his fair share of playoff battles.

As was the case after the 2021 trade deadline, it’s officially time to start believing in the Nuggets again.