Last season, the Nuggets lost Carmelo Anthony to the Knicks. The move left the team without star power, but Denver still finished the season with an impressive 50-win total. The Nuggets lost to the Thunder in the first round of the playoffs, but head coach George Karl remains excited about this year’s team despite its lack of a true superstar.
“I think, I hope, as I am preaching to the team is the Denver Nuggets is going to be out being a team” Karl said in an interview with KKFN in Denver that Sports Radio Interviews shared with us. “It has nothing to do about individuality and basically screw all the guys out there that think you gotta have a superstar to win a championship. I’m just not into the hype. … I’m excited because if Oklahoma City is the darlings of the NBA and we are not that far from them.”
Denver recently inked Nene Hilario to a five-year, $67 million deal, so he is obviously someone who is being paid like a superstar that they think they can build a contender around. With a mix of young players like Ty Lawson and veterans like Danilo Gallinari, the Nuggets should be far from a punching bag in the Western Conference.
Teams with superstars generally succeed in the NBA — especially in a seven-game playoff series. That being said, a superstar can emerge over the course of the season. If Chris Paul went to the Lakers the Western Conference picture would be a bit clearer, but instead he was traded to the Clippers which should make them a contender as well. Karl is a good enough coach to keep the Nuggets in the hunt and lead them to the playoffs once again.
