"If We Don't Win It This Year, We All Know They Might Have To Break It Up." - Michael Porter Jr Said The Quiet Part Out Loud When It Comes To The Nuggets Title Window

AAron Ontiveroz. Getty Images.

Yesterday, I blogged about how when NBA teams who are deemed contenders get off to a rough start and underachieve, it's basically blood in the water for trade rumors and drama, just like we got with the idea that Giannis is maybe on the verge of demanding a trade.

The other thing you can bank on is some sort of deep dive article into what a disaster things may be at the moment. Sometimes it comes from The Athletic, other times from Bleacher Report, and in our latest example, ESPN

It should come as no surprise that these types of situations are happening to both the Bucks and Nuggets to start the year, two teams that were talked about as title contenders who are easily off to some of the most disappointing starts in the NBA. At least the Sixers have the excuse of not having two of their best players, but DEN and MIL? Their problems to begin the year are a bit trickier to solve.

When looking at both of their situations, things are eerily similar. The best player looks as good as ever (Jokic, Giannis), but everything around them doesn't seem to be anywhere close to good enough. The front office decisions of both franchises are what ultimately have them in this position, and their issues are pretty similar. Awful bench play, a lack of consistent shooting, no defense, no intensity etc

The Nuggets (2-2) have started the year with the 21st ranked defense, the 17th ranked offense, and the 20th ranked net rating. It took Nikola Jokic going absolutely nuclear just to survive back-to-back OT wins over the Raptors and Nets, and while he's clearly the best player on the planet, it's not fair to need him to drop insane 40 point triple doubles just to beat the bottom of the league.

Within that ESPN piece, there was one quote specifically that stood out, and it came from Michael Porter Jr who essentially said the quiet part out loud

It's pretty crazy that we've gone from the Nuggets being the next dynasty after their 2023 title to already talking about how their roster could potentially be blown up just 2 seasons later. Unfortunately, that's life in the new era of the NBA with how the CBA is structured. The Nuggets shelled out massive extensions to keep this core together, but it came at the expense of their depth. If they underachieve, with no real way to improve their roster you have to move to your next option, which is flipping some of your high priced contracts.

This isn't only going to be a Nuggets issue, as other teams like BOS/MIL/PHX etc could one day find themselves in a similar spot unless their ownership group is willing to spend hundreds of millions in luxury tax penalties. But if you're a team that isn't contending, who is footing that bill? 

It's now much harder to "reload" in today's NBA with all the team-building restrictions that come with being an apron team, which is why drafting is so important. With the Bucks, we're seeing what missing year after year in the draft has done to their situation, and the same thing looks to be true with the Nuggets.

Given everything we've seen/heard over the last few days, it's no surprise the vibes around both the Bucks and Nuggets seem to be in the gutter at the moment. The good news is there's A LOT of basketball left to be played, seeing as how it's only November 1st. But if the players are already talking like this and seem this defeated before we even get to Thanksgiving, perhaps they really are cooked.