The Nuggets were left stunned by their first-round loss to the Wolves, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Against a stout Minnesota defense, almost the entire rotation — including stars Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray — underperformed relative to the regular season, when Denver won 54 games and entered the playoffs having won 12 straight contests.
Although there’s been some speculation about head coach David Adelman potentially being on the hot seat after the early exit, Durando hears the “immediate sense” within the Nuggets is he’ll be back at the helm in 2026/27. Both Jokic and Murray offered support for Adelman after the team was eliminated on Thursday, Durando notes.
“It’s not his fault we couldn’t rebound,” Jokic said. “It’s not his fault we couldn’t catch the ball very well. There is nothing to blame David Adelman. It’s all us.”
Here are a few more notes and rumors related to the Nuggets, whose expensive payroll could lead to roster changes this summer:
The Nuggets value Aaron Gordon and recognize how vital he has been to the team’s success over the years, but a series of hamstring and calf strains have limited his availability over the past two seasons, and those injuries have people wondering if he’ll be able to make it through another deep playoff run going forward, according to Durando. While Gordon has been off-limits in trade talks during previous transaction windows, league sources tell Durando that won’t be the case this summer.
As Durando writes, the future of the core in Denver (outside of Jokic) seems very much up in the air following another early playoff ouster. Durando confirms the Nuggets want to re-sign restricted free agent Peyton Watson, who missed the series due to a hamstrain strain. But that would push the team over the second tax apron, and ownership was considered unlikely to foot that bill even before the disappointing postseason run.
In part because he’s entering the final year of his contract, which pays him $23MM in 2026/27, Cameron Johnson has long been viewed as the most likely starter to be traded this summer to clear out money for Watson, league sources tell Durando. Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette has heard similarly, pointing out that Christian Braun‘s five-year, $125MM rookie scale extension and the $106.4MM Gordon is owed over the next three years may make them more difficult to move.
Both Durando and Benedetto wonder if Murray could be a trade candidate this offseason. He’s coming off the best regular season of his career and will likely make his first All-NBA team, but he has struggled against elite defenders the past two postseasons. Jokic expressed confidence in the duo’s ability on Thursday, Durando notes. “I mean, I think we are still good,” Jokic said. “I think we created the looks. Sometimes you need to make it. I think a miss doesn’t make you a bad player, and misses don’t make you a bad decision-maker. It’s a miss-or-make league. So we couldn’t make any shots. … I’m confident in my and Jamal’s two-man game.”
Braun refused to use injuries as an excuse for the first-round loss, Durando adds. “Obviously I have confidence in us getting back and (winning a title) because we have done it. … This team is so good that every time you lose early is a disappointment,” Braun said. “So we’ve gotta be better. I know we can do it with this group. Whatever happens (this offseason), happens. We’ve gotta find a way to get better. You can’t blame anything. You can’t blame injuries. You can’t blame health. They had injuries, too, and they kicked our (butt).”
