There is always a lot of pressure on good and very good teams in the NBA to win it all, but once such a team does win it all, that pressure intensifies.
Suddenly, people expect that team to win another ring, and at the same time, the rest of the league is gunning for that squad.
In addition, the league’s salary cap makes it next-to-impossible for squads to keep together an entire championship core for more than a short amount of time.
Brian Windhorst said on ESPN that for the Denver Nuggets, who won the world title just 15 months ago, the “pressure has now arrived” for several reasons, per ClutchPoints.
“[The Nuggets] are going to be a very expensive team… They’ve run out of time with cheaper contracts… The pressure has now arrived.”
Brian Windhorst on if the Nuggets’ championship window has closed 👀
(via @ESPNNBA)pic.twitter.com/xT9aCBFiz7
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 19, 2024
When the Nuggets claimed the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June 2023, many people thought they would win at least one more ring and possibly even become a dynasty.
While they earned the second seed in the Western Conference this past season, they fell flat on their faces in the second round of the playoffs and lost in seven games to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
As Windhorst pointed out, they decided to not spend money to keep starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and he left this summer in free agency.
It looks like Denver has prioritized Jamal Murray and possibly forward Aaron Gordon, but even without Caldwell-Pope, their roster is about to become very expensive.
They should still be a very good team this season, but without one of their key contributors to their championship team, not to mention a lack of bench depth, they may take a step back.
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Bill Simmons Says He’s Worried About 1 NBA Team Next Season
