Ranking the Denver Nuggets Against Every NBA Championship Team of the Last 5 Years

The 2022-2023 Denver Nuggets are NBA champions, and deservedly so.

This change into as soon as a crew largely built throughout the draft, with some dapper trades and free-agent signings mixed in.

Staring at for key gamers a lot like Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. to come support from most necessary injuries change into as soon as charge it in the cease, because the Nuggets dominated the 2023 postseason, culminating in a gentleman’s sweep of the Miami Warmth.

With the mud settled, how does Denver stack up in opposition to earlier champions?

When comparing playoff document, net rating, opponents and overall crew strengths, this is where the Nuggets land amongst the the rest five NBA champions.

Finals End result: Raptors over Golden Advise Warriors, 4-2

Playoff Win/Loss: 16-8

Playoff Salvage Score: plus-5.6

The Raptors had been the surprising champions of the 2019 season for a series of reasons.

Their opponents, the Warriors, had been the unquestioned favorites having steamrolled throughout the playoffs the past two years. Kawhi Leonard change into as soon as in his first season with the Raptors and starting heart Marc Gasol change into as soon as obtained faithful months earlier on the factitious time restrict.

Along with Danny Green, who change into as soon as introduced over in the Leonard substitute, 60 percent of this starting lineup wasn’t even with Toronto the 300 and sixty five days sooner than. Even Pascal Siakam, the crew’s opening strength forward and 2nd-leading scorer in the Finals, hadn’t began a playoff game till the 2019 postseason.

This change into as soon as the first title in Raptors history after coming so shut in earlier runs with Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. Leonard ended up being a condominium, signing with the Los Angeles Clippers faithful weeks later. Of route, even one championship supposed that the factitious change into as soon as charge it.

While nobody is asserting Toronto didn’t must rating, it is furthermore ravishing to showcase Kevin Durant’s absence in the series. Lacking the first four games with a calf injury, he then tore his Achilles faithful 12 minutes into Sport 5. After winning Finals MVP the earlier two years, he change into as soon as small to faithful 11 total points on this series.

This wasn’t a deep Warriors crew, both, so no longer having Durant change into as soon as a mammoth loss for Golden Advise, which easy managed to rating Games 2 and 5.

Toronto ended the series with six gamers averaging double-digits, led by Leonard’s 28.5 points per contest. As factual as these Raptors had been, they’d fall short in opposition to any of the other healthy champions on this list.

Finals End result: Warriors over Boston Celtics, 4-2

Playoff Win/Loss: 16-6

Playoff Salvage Score: plus-4.9

The Warriors dynasty proved it change into as soon as easy alive and well in 2022 following a 3-300 and sixty five days title drought, though this version looked diversified than in years past.

Out change into as soon as Kevin Durant. Taking his location had been Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole, gamers who done because the crew’s 2nd (18.3 points) and fourth (13.2 points) leading scorers, respectively.

Of route, Stephen Curry change into as soon as on the heart of the championship, taking residence his first Finals MVP with averages of 31.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.0 steals and a 43.7 percent discover from three.

This change into as soon as title No. 4 for this core after beforehand defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2015, 2017 and 2018.

“They’re all extraordinary, they are all particular,” head coach Steve Kerr acknowledged through The Athletic’s Joe Vardon. “I mediate this one also can had been the no longer likely faithful from the standpoint of where we now had been the the rest couple years.”

Indeed, going from the worst crew in the NBA to winning a title change into as soon as impressive, namely after reinventing the crew after Durant’s departure.

Golden Advise furthermore needed to come support support from a 2-1 deficit to the Celtics, winning the the rest three contests while retaining Boston to 97 points or less.

Despite all of this, the 2022 Warriors had been a long way from the valid crew of the past five years. They putrid remaining in net rating amongst the champs, bought unhappy offensive performances from Klay Thompson (35.6 percent shooting) and Draymond Green (33.3 percent) and looked a long way removed from the juggernaut of years past.

This change into as soon as a gigantic Golden Advise crew overall however easy no longer the valid we now beget seen as of slack.

Finals End result: Lakers over Miami Warmth, 4-2

Playoff Win/Loss: 16-5

Playoff Salvage Score: plus-6.9

The 2020 Lakers had been indubitably the most extraordinary champions of the past five years, taking residence their title on October 11, 2020 in Walt Disney World.

The champions of the bubble that change into as soon as constructed after the NBA’s COVID-19 shutdown, Los Angeles’ title tied them with the Boston Celtics with 17, the most by any franchise in league history.

While this Lakers crew featured a plethora of talented role gamers, the Finals in point of fact came down to the play of LeBron James and Anthony Davis.

Both averaged double-doubles in the six-game series, with James posting 29.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and eight.5 assists while Davis effect in 25.0 points, 10.7 rebounds, 3.2 assists and a pair of.0 blocks.

This marked James’ fourth title and Finals MVP, capping off a season that lasted bigger than a calendar 300 and sixty five days from the time practising camps opened in the autumn of 2019.

The Warmth had been compelled to play shorthanded now and again, though, as starting level guard Goran Dragić uncared for four games with a foot injury. Bam Adebayo, Miami’s leading scorer at 22.3 points per game, uncared for a pair of contests to boot with neck and shoulder disorders.

The Lakers’ impressive final net rating and their mental and bodily resilience to be the the rest crew standing in this form of no longer easy environment must be counseled, on the other hand.

Finals End result: Bucks over Phoenix Suns, 4-2

Playoff Win/Loss: 16-7

Playoff Salvage Score: plus-5.3

The 2021 Bucks had all of it.

An MVP in Giannis Antetokounmpo, defensive aces with Jrue Vacation and Brook Lopez, a decent 2nd scorer in Khris Middleton and a couple of of the toughest dudes in the league with P.J. Tucker and Bobby Portis.

This change into as soon as a case of when “going all-in” in point of fact goes valid, because the factitious for Vacation change into as soon as dear however proved to be the missing portion to location alongside Antetokounmpo and Middleton. No longer supreme did he play very fair valid protection, however Vacation furthermore averaged 16.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 9.3 assists and a pair of.2 steals in the Finals.

Milwaukee’s 106.8 defensive rating change into as soon as the valid of any 2021 playoff crew, retaining the Suns to 103 points or less in three of the the rest four games.

Of route, Antetokounmpo change into as soon as the critical particular person enchantment here, averaging over 35.0 points per game for the series, including a monster 50-level efficiency to receive the title in Sport 6.

This change into as soon as a in spite of all the pieces factual Suns opponent to boot, one which featured an All-Huge title in Chris Paul along with Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Deandre Ayton, Jae Crowder and Cameron Johnson.

Despite an sinful overall document and net rating to the 2020 Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee will get the nod here resulting from having to fight through a superior, healthy crew in the Finals.

The Bucks’ skill to climb out of an 0-2 hole and rating four straight games change into as soon as furthermore impressive, inserting them at No. 2 overall on this list.

Finals End result: Nuggets over Miami Warmth, 4-1

Playoff Win/Loss: 16-4

Playoff Salvage Score: plus-8.0

After having a discover inclined after the All-Huge title spoil, Denver locked in as soon as the postseason began.

A 16-4 document is the valid of any title winner over the the rest five years, as is the Nuggets’ plus-8.0 net rating. No other NBA playoff crew done bigger than three games above .500 (the Miami Warmth at 13-10) while the Boston Celtics’ net rating of plus-3.2 change into as soon as the closest to Denver overall.

The Nuggets had been nearly unbeatable at residence, going 9-1 overall this postseason while no longer shedding a single game in Denver till the Finals. They swept a factual Los Angeles Lakers crew featuring LeBron James and Anthony Davis while beforehand striking off stars relish Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Karl-Anthony Cities and Anthony Edwards.

There change into as soon as furthermore an natural beauty to this Nuggets crew. From drafting Nikola Jokić with the forty first pick in 2014 and staring at him raze into a Finals MVP to staying affected person when Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. uncared for time with serious injuries, this change into as soon as a easy crew to root for.

Of route, having fun with in opposition to Denver change into as soon as anything however.

The combo of Jokić and Murray on offense is without doubt one of the vital valid we now beget seen over the previous couple of an extended time, an unstoppable scoring force from anywhere on the bottom. A shaky frequent-season protection tightened up in the playoffs, as a 110.2 rating change into as soon as a 3.3-level deliver, proving the Nuggets had been equally harmful on every ends of the bottom.

No crew has looked as dominant as these Nuggets for the explanation that 2017-18 Golden Advise Warriors, with this franchise location as a lot as rating for future years support.