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NBA: Should the Clippers or Nuggets Be More Concerned This Season?

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With training camps starting next week, the 2021-22 NBA season is less than a month away. Most teams are issue-free heading towards the beginning of the season, but several teams may not be the teams they were in the 2020-21 season. Two teams that face that issue this year are the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers. Both were dominant forces in the Western Conference last season, but each team has its own handful of issues that could cause concern. With some of these concerns being small and the others big, they bring up the question of where these NBA teams will end up come mid-April. 

 

Denver Nuggets 

 

Last season, the Denver Nuggets finished the season with a 47-25 record, the third-best record in the NBA Western Conference. The Nuggets were led by the 2021 MVP Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, who played for most of the season. In early April 2021, Murray left a game with a torn ACL, an injury that could have a recovery time of anywhere from six months to over a year. Given the time of his injury, it is likely if Murray returns this season, but it would be sometime after the new year or even after the all-star break. With an injury like an ACL tear, some people return playing the same while others have to switch up their game.

On a positive note, Murray posted videos on social media in August showing that his bounce returned. Murray’s absence during the first half of the season could possibly have the same impact that it did during the playoffs. It took the team six games to beat the Portland Trailblazers while be led solely by MVP Nikola Jokic. The team was then swept by the Phoenix Suns, with Jokic struggling due to the lack of help. With the roster heading into the season being almost the same as the playoff roster, it is unknown if Jokic will get the help he didn’t in the playoffs. Players like Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon have looked good one night and like they’re missing the next. If those players, among others, can be more consistent during the season, Jokic may get the help he needs until Murray returns. Another issue the Nuggets face heading into the season is the competition of the West. Teams like the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers will most likely jump to the upper tier of the West after both being a part of the play-in tournament last season. It is also likely that the Phoenix Suns will remain in the top tier of the conference. By the time early April comes, it might be possible to see the Nuggets fighting to remain in the top half of the conference. 

 

Los Angeles Clippers

 

Like the Nuggets, the Los Angeles Clippers finished with a 47-25 record, taking the fourth seed in the West. Eliminating the Mavericks in seven games and the Jazz in six games, the Clippers would be eliminated by the Suns in six games. An important reason for the Clippers losing against the Suns is the absence of Kawhi Leonard. Missing the last two games of the Jazz series and all of the Suns series, many were curious as to why Kawhi wasn’t playing. It had appeared that Leonard injured himself in Game 4 against the Jazz, at the same time, the organization was being very quiet about it. It was announced after the elimination by the Suns that Leonard had a partially torn ACL. With a typical ACL injury has an average recovery time of six months to a year, a partially torn could see that recovery time reduced. Unfortunately, Kawhi Leonard has a history of injuries. Most notably, Leonard missed the majority of the 2017-18 NBA season after suffering an ankle injury in the previous season’s playoffs and several quadriceps injuries during the 17-18 season. While Leonard has not slowed down from previous injuries, it is possible that they could start to build up.

Like Murray with the Nuggets, Kawhi will more than likely not be playing until after the new year. With Kawhi’s history of injuries, the organization may wait even longer to bring him back, just to be safe. In the meantime, the team will be led solely by Paul George. George has had his ups and downs during his tenure with the Clippers, but last season was a good season overall. While he only played 54 games in the regular season, George finished with splits of 23.3 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, and 5.2 assists per game. It’s possible that George’s splits could increase in Kawhi’s absence or decrease if he faces the same problem Jokic faced in the playoffs. With PG13 being the definite #1 scoring option for the team, another question to ask is who will step up. In the playoffs, the team saw good games from players like Reggie Jackson, Terrance Mann, and even Marcus Morris Sr., but there is no guarantee that those players could have playoff performances every night. Being in the West, the Clippers face serious competition from teams like the Lakers, Suns, and Warriors. While there’s only a small chance the Clippers could miss the playoffs (if everything were to go wrong), it is likely that the Clippers will end up in the bottom half of the NBA Western Conference playoff race.

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