The Nuggets May Have Finally Solved Their Biggest Rotational Puzzle in the Jokić Era With a Perfectly Fitting Backup Big
For years, the Denver Nuggets have operated like a finely tuned machine with Nikola Jokić as the central cog—an MVP-caliber player with a unique style that blends finesse, vision, scoring, and size. With him on the floor, the Nuggets have long looked like championship contenders. Without him? The machine sputtered, often wildly out of sync. The problem wasn’t necessarily scheme or effort. It was personnel—specifically, the glaring absence of a reliable, cohesive backup big man who could sustain the team’s identity when Jokić needed a breather.
That void may finally be filled.
For all the genius of Jokić and the steadily evolving brilliance of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., Denver has consistently run into the same wall: their minutes without Jokić have historically been net negatives. Whether it was during regular season stints or high-stakes playoff series, the “non-Jokić” minutes were like a slow bleed. The team often scrambled with undersized lineups, overextended forwards, or traditional bigs who couldn’t play the same style. That lack of continuity routinely burned them.
Look back at past iterations. The Nuggets tried JaVale McGee, DeMarcus Cousins, Mason Plumlee, and Thomas Bryant in the backup center role—all with varying degrees of competence but no true system fit. Some were too slow-footed, others too inconsistent, some simply miscast. Even when they posted decent counting stats, their presence warped the team’s rhythm, often forcing Coach Michael Malone to adjust schemes or stagger Jokić’s minutes more aggressively.
The fundamental issue was that Denver couldn’t replicate even a hint of its offensive identity without Jokić’s singular playmaking from the high post, his orchestration of dribble handoffs, and his ability to stretch the floor. Most backup bigs were black holes in ball movement or lacked the foot speed to defend in space. The bench units became isolation-heavy or dependent on guards to manufacture every possession. That’s a recipe for playoff collapse, or at the very least, unsustainable regular-season pressure on the starters.
But this offseason brought something different—a signing that, while not headline-grabbing, may be pivotal. In quietly acquiring a backup big who mirrors some of Jokić’s instincts and thrives in motion-heavy, read-and-react systems, the Nuggets might have found the missing piece.
This new addition—young, mobile, and system-conscious—has already shown early flashes of why he fits. He’s not trying to replicate Jokić’s brilliance; that’s an impossible ask. But what he brings is a functional simulation of the same style: a willingness to pass, a feel for spacing, a capacity to screen and rescreen, and the mobility to switch or hedge on defense. That allows Denver to run similar sets without rewriting their entire offensive identity when Jokić sits.
And make no mistake: system fit is everything in Denver. The Nuggets don’t run a generic NBA offense; they operate around principles of movement, spacing, and timing that revolve around Jokić’s feel for the game. When a backup big disrupts that cadence, even unintentionally, it throws off every other moving piece. Wings get fewer clean looks. Guards work harder for buckets. The transition defense suffers. The offensive rebounding disappears.
But with a competent and stylistically compatible big off the bench, Denver gains precious continuity. It enables the coaching staff to maintain their preferred rotations, limit wear and tear on Jokić, and most importantly, keep the offense humming. Instead of panic lineups or endless trial-and-error combinations, Malone can now trust that second units won’t self-destruct.
The ripple effect is immense. With a reliable backup 5, the Nuggets can experiment more confidently with Murray off the ball or staggered with second units. Young wings can develop within a functioning offensive structure rather than trying to salvage broken possessions. Veteran role players can focus on their strengths, knowing they aren’t plugging systemic holes.
It’s also a nod to organizational growth. For years, Denver leaned heavily on star talent to mask bench deficiencies. But true championship-level rosters aren’t just built on top-end firepower; they’re forged in the margins, through smart acquisitions, cohesive fits, and sustainable depth.
The Nuggets have seen firsthand how quickly things can fall apart when Jokić sits. In last year’s playoffs, every minute he was on the bench felt like a gamble. Leads vanished. Momentum shifted. Malone had no real alternative but to stretch Jokić’s minutes deep into the 40s, risking fatigue and long-term wear.
Contrast that with teams like the Celtics or Bucks, who, even when their stars sat, had plug-and-play depth that preserved leads or treaded water. That’s the difference between a contender and a champion. And it’s why this quiet addition could be the kind of move that shapes Denver’s next postseason run.
It’s also a subtle shift in Denver’s front office philosophy. Rather than chasing name recognition or gambling on pure athleticism, they prioritized fit. They targeted someone who understands angles, plays within himself, and enhances others. Someone who thrives in the connective tissue role—setting solid screens, making the extra pass, rotating on time.
What’s fascinating is how much Jokić himself may benefit. No longer shouldering the entire burden of creation in every single stint, he can conserve energy, sit with confidence, and trust that the system won’t collapse without him. That’s invaluable over the course of an 82-game season, especially for a player whose playoff value is immeasurable.
It also puts pressure on the coaching staff in a good way. With a real second-unit anchor in the frontcourt, Malone has more lineup flexibility. He can stagger less. He can buy minutes for the starters. He can experiment with hybrid lineups that blend youth and experience without sacrificing coherence.
There’s also the long-term view. Jokić isn’t going anywhere, but having a younger big who can operate in the same conceptual mold opens the door to developmental continuity. Younger players can grow within the same system framework, preparing for bigger roles without starting from scratch.
Of course, none of this is guaranteed. The new addition still has to prove himself across a full season, adapt to Denver’s altitude, and stay healthy. Chemistry isn’t automatic, and one fit on paper doesn’t always translate to results. But for the first time in a long time, the Nuggets aren’t just hoping a backup big survives—they’re expecting him to contribute meaningfully.
It’s a subtle, perhaps even boring storyline in the grand scheme of the NBA’s offseason noise. But for a team as finely tuned as Denver, the margins matter. The last 6–8 minutes of the second quarter. The first five of the fourth. Those are the stretches that decide playoff games, and ultimately, championships.
So while Jokić will rightfully continue to be the sun around which everything orbits, Denver’s acquisition of a backup who actually fits the system may be one of the most important, under-the-radar moves of the offseason.
Because sometimes, solving your biggest problem doesn’t require a blockbuster trade or a max contract. Sometimes it just takes finally finding someone who fits.
