Playoff Prospects: What's Holding Back The Denver Nuggets From Another Finals Appearance?

In this series, we’ll take a look at each NBA team that’s gunning for a deep playoff run. We’ll try to predict the players that will have the biggest impact, as well as the ceiling for each squad in the 2026 postseason.

Three years ago, the Denver Nuggets were on top of the basketball world. They’d won their first NBA title in franchise history, proving that no one in the league could solve the statistical anomaly that is Nikola Jokić.

But, for one reason or another, the Nuggets have not been able to return to the NBA Finals since then. Perhaps it was the departure of glue guys and energizers like Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Perhaps it was the injury bug getting the better of Jokić’s teammates. Or, perhaps it was the significant improvement of other playoff powerhouses in the Western Conference.

Whatever the case may be, the Nuggets have yet another chance to run things back and set foot on the promised land again. Brown is back with the team, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon are back in harness for the home stretch of the regular season, and Jokić is once again in the MVP race. Will it be déjà vu for the 2023 NBA champions?

Years from now, statisticians will look at Nikola Jokić’s numbers and wonder how they were even possible.

Like Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson from bygone eras of the NBA, Jokić makes everything look so easy, whether it’s piling up the points, cleaning up the glass, or serving up passes that resemble a magician’s tricks. Even as Victor Wembanyama has accelerated his growth and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has built a strong case for back-to-back MVP awards, Jokić has kept himself in the conversation for the best player in the game today.

Where Jokić goes, the Nuggets follow. The championship experience of a former NBA MVP and Finals MVP is incredibly tough to match.

Peyton Watson was a rookie when the Nuggets won the NBA championship three years ago. At the time, the former UCLA Bruin played just 23 regular-season games, barely averaging eight minutes per outing.

Fast forward to 2026, and Watson has made a name for himself as a legitimate 3-and-D threat. His efficiency from deep has steadily improved over the past three seasons, and he has also earned the trust of coaches like Michael Malone and Dave Adelman by putting in the effort on the defensive end.

3-and-D players are especially important in the playoffs, when the pace slows down and tactical matchups are deployed like chess moves. Watson may very well be handed a high-profile assignment or two when the postseason arrives.

When the regular season comes to a close, the Nuggets might find themselves in the No. 4 spot, especially because the Los Angeles Lakers (with whom they are neck-and-neck in the standings) won their season series 2-1.

A fourth-place finish in the Western Conference could land the Nuggets opposite the Houston Rockets. It’s likely that this first-round series will go the distance, and the Nuggets’ championship pedigree will spell the difference.

After a hard-fought series in the first round, the Nuggets will probably square off against the Oklahoma City Thunder. With the defending champions showing lethal form this late in the season, the Nuggets’ Finals aspirations this year could finally come to an end at the hands of the Thunder.