Wind Chimes: Details on the Nuggets' Miami minicamp

When former Nugget Paul Millsap arrived in Denver in 2017, he brought the voluntary offseason minicamp with him. It typically took place in Atlanta at his own facility, CORE4, and a little over one month before formal Nuggets training camp opened. Millsap’s goal was simple: to bring together as many teammates as possible and build chemistry ahead of the regular season.

Some Nuggets players gathered — not in Atlanta but just due south — near Miami this week where Jeff Green organized a players-only voluntary minicamp at NBA skills trainer Stanley Remy’s South Florida gym. Davon Reed, Zeke Nnaji, and rookies Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and Jack White attended.

Others like Jamal Murray wanted to make the trip but had scheduling conflicts. Murray is going on an NBA trip to Australia in conjunction with the league opening its first brick-and-mortar NBA Store in Melbourne.

Source: Jeff Green organized a voluntary Nuggets minicamp in Miami this week that was attended by Davon Reed, Zeke Nnaji and rookies Christian Braun, Peyton Watson and Jack White. Others wanted to attend but had scheduling conflicts.

— Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) August 10, 2022

Ex-Nuggets Will Barton and Austin Rivers dropped into the gym throughout the week too. Various other NBA players were also there working out and playing 5-on-5. If Los Angeles is the Mecca of summer basketball, Miami isn’t far behind. It’s an offseason hub for the NBA.

Green, who’s entering his 15th NBA season and spends much of his summer in Miami, organizing this meet-up is notable. At 35 years old, he’s the eldest player on the Nuggets’ roster. He’s one of Denver’s vets and is highly respected within the locker room. His words carry weight. If you’re a rookie or younger player and get an invite from Green to come to Miami in August for a string of workouts, you go if your schedule permits. You like to see this leadership from him.

I bet Michael Malone looks at this as a real positive in the lead-up to the season too. I think this Green-led minicamp would fall under Malone’s umbrella of what goes into having a “championship mindset” entering his season. Get ready to hear that phrase frequently once Denver’s real training camp opens in late September.

Vet leadership is a funny thing. It’s impossible to quantify but something that everyone on the inside insists that those of us on the outside don’t value enough. And I believe it. It’s impossible for us who aren’t behind closed doors to see how impactful real leadership is. But those who would actually know, swear by it. You can’t put a value on having guys who have been there before or rostering vets who have the authority and have earned the respect necessary to tell it like it is. The Nuggets not having enough of those veterans is a criticism that I’ve heard from people outside the organization in recent years.

Jeff Green is one of those guys. So is DeAndre Jordan. When JaMychal Green, a respected locker room voice, was traded away earlier this summer, the Nuggets replaced him with a veteran whose voice also carried a lot of weight. Jordan brings a championship pedigree and will have the respect and attention of this roster the minute he arrives in town. Jordan has been there before. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope? He’s been there before too. Ish Smith? He won’t be relied on (if everything goes to plan this season), but he’s also been there before.

Think of this informal camp as the unofficial start to Denver’s preseason. Players who don’t make their offseason homes in Denver will begin to filter back to town starting next week for more formal workouts and team activities. Braun, Watson and the Nuggets’ rookies are about to experience the Red Rocks Workout for the first time.

Nuggets training camp opens on Sep. 27 in San Diego. Denver’s first preseason game will be a few days after camp concludes on Oct. 1. We’re less than two months away from seeing Nuggets basketball again.