The Denver Nuggets have seemed each bit as dominant within the early a part of the 2023-24 NBA season as they did throughout their Finals run in 2023, after they obliterated each staff of their path en path to the title. Throughout that postseason run, the Nuggets misplaced solely 4 video games, proving that they had been a tier above the remainder of the sphere.
Denver didn’t precisely have a simple path to the championship both. Whereas their stellar play within the common season did clinch them the one seed and home-court benefit all through the postseason, the way in which the remainder of the standings and the Play-In Match shook out, the Nuggets actually didn’t draw the breeziest opponents accessible. Let’s have a look at how the Nuggets stack up in distinction to the general champion predictions.
Denver Nuggets dominant 2023 championship run
For the primary spherical, they drew the upstart Minnesota Timberwolves and endured the total brunt of Anthony Edwards’s popping out celebration as a real NBA famous person. The T-Wolves had made loads of roster strikes to attempt to area a greater roster round Edwards, together with including multiple-time Defensive Participant of the Yr winner Rudy Gobert. Even with Gobert becoming a member of a gifted squad that includes Edwards, Karl-Anthony Cities, and Jaden McDaniels, Denver made fast work of the new-look Wolves, dispatching them in simply 5 video games.
Following their gentleman’s sweep of the Wolves, the Nuggets earned the privilege of taking part in the Phoenix Suns and their new famous person duo of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant. Whereas a lot of the Colorado sports activities betting panorama nonetheless had religion within the Nuggets, the acquisition of KD put some worry into native betting markets as future bets dwindled. Denver’s depth was the separating issue, as they raced previous Phoenix within the second spherical, however Ebook and KD’s offensive greatness was in a position to steal the Suns two victories.
The Nuggets reward for toppling Phoenix was a second-round conflict in opposition to LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the opposite Los Angeles Lakers. Any collection in opposition to James, one of many two biggest gamers in league historical past, isn’t to be taken frivolously. The collection led to a sweep in Denver’s favor, however all the video games went right down to the wire. The sweep was a raging endorsement for Denver’s dominance, not any sort of indictment on James and the Lakers. In that collection, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray’s two-man recreation merely proved to be an excessive amount of for the veteran Lakers to attempt to include for a full collection.
Within the Finals, they ran right into a red-hot Miami Warmth staff, led by Jimmy Butler in a Cinderella run that began within the Play-In Match and resulted in upsets over Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks, the New York Knicks, and the Boston Celtics. Miami appeared just like the staff of future, not solely surprising followers all over the world throughout their run, but in addition surviving a rousing comeback from the Celtics after going up 3-0, solely to win a Recreation 7 to stop the primary reverse sweep in NBA historical past and advance to the Finals.
Denver Nuggets 2024 NBA Championship odds
And but, Nikola Jokic and the remainder of the Denver Nuggets weren’t afraid of future. They made fast work of an exhausted Warmth staff, knocking them off in simply 5 fast video games to seal their title run and are available house with the Larry O’Brien.
Regardless of their dominance all through that postseason run and their league-leading 6-1 report to begin the 2023-24 marketing campaign, the Nuggets have but to earn the respect of Vegas oddsmakers. Denver may not have made the splashiest additions of the offseason, however they need to be the favorites till confirmed in any other case. But, most sportsbooks have them behind each the Boston Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks for championship odds. BetMGM has them tied for third-best odds with the Phoenix Suns at +550. Who knew the defending champions would transform an honest dark-horse choose for the title.