After winning the Finals this year, the nuggets are pretty much bringing back the same team without Bruce brown but other teams like the bucks, Celtics and suns have improved. Imo I think the next 2-3 championships will be won by either the Bucks or Celtics and I think the Nuggets will make the finals again this year but the only way they might win again in the future is to either make a trade for a 3rd star or get much better depth.
Not likely. This isn’t a dig at Jokić, it’s just that there’s so much parity and other external factors at play in today’s NBA.
I remember Lakers, Bucks, and Warriors fans as well as opposing fans all thinking those teams would repeat after winning it all in their respective seasons only to fail miserably.
Last season is last season.
Depends what fail miserably means, especially in context of this question, which was 2-3 years.
Lakers made it back to WCF by third year
Warriors went to 6 in the second round only one year later. And have 2 more years left in this window technically - also they already won 4 rings with their core so this is kinda post Championship anyway.
Bucks went to 7 without their number 2 scorer the year after and had the worst shooting night like ever. Giannis got hurt 1st quarter of game 1 this year and missed 2 more. So no best player in league for basically 3 games of the series.
Now they have Dame and entering third season, but their biggest issue been health, not lack of play.
I’m not saying second round or Conference finals equates a ring but the teams have hung around and for Lakers and Bucks the issue seems to be injuries and not so much the play on the court. I agree about parity but I also think if Nuggets lost Jokic for 3 games in a series maybe they don’t make the finals either. So ultimately it’s going to come down to health.
4th. After winning in 2020, they lost in the first round in 2021, missed the playoffs in 2022, and were swept in 2023.
Losing in the 2nd round after a majority of people considered them the overwhelming favorites in the West is a miserable failure.
The Celtics series in 2022 was winnable even without Khris. And in 2023, they blew double digit 4th quarter leads in back-to-back playoff games with Giannis playing.
Injuries are one of the external factors I’m referring to.
The difference is our team is entirely in its prime, or not even there yet.
Yeah, Bucks fans said the same thing. Lakers fans thought they were set with AD being relatively young too. Anything can happen.
I agree anything can happen but those are some god awful examples. OKC with Durant, Westbrook, Harden going to the finals super early then never again comes to mind as a better example
So you agree with my overall point yet chose to argue anyways. Go find a friend.
I’m not arguing lol, I’m simply telling you your examples are shit
injuries made AD go from a top 3 player and top 3 pf of all time into a fringe top 10 guy.
They only got past the second round because Giannis injured kyrie out of frustration (and because harden pulled his hammy). I think most people were aware that the bucks ring was one of those “once in a lifetime” events.
Nobody considered them the best team in the league and nobody outside of Milwaukee considered Giannis to be the best player in the league after KD outplayed him.
On the other hand the nuggets bodied a mostly healthy suns, lakers, heat with jokic looking like he was easily the best in the world.
As long as jokic, Jamal, Gordon stay healthy, nuggets will continue to contend.
None of those teams were healthy.