Denver Nuggets head coach David Adelman addresses team's lineup after tough loss to the Orlando Magic
The Denver Nuggets find themselves dealing with a handful of injuries, as three of their opening night starters are currently out due to injury. Therefore, the team has had to adjust and has seen success so far in large part due to the additional depth contributions they made over the offseason. Regardless, there are still limitations when missing that many players.
Despite facing an Orlando Magic team dealing with injuries to key starters as well, the Nuggets suffered their 9th loss of the season on Saturday in a narrow 127-126 defeat. While Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray did what they could, Denver's bench wasn't able to hold things together.
David Adelman Addresses Nuggets' Lineup
With all four of Denver's bench options posting a plus-minus of -7 or worse (Jonas Valanciunas was the worst at -17), head coach David Adelman was asked about the team's lineup and how it stands going forward with the remaining six games of the road trip.
"I think anything is on the table. I always believe that you got to give people more than a few games to see if you know they can find some cohesion. Julian [Strawther] had a good night offensively, which is good to see. But yeah, I'm gonna try to find the best combination possible going forward," Adelman said.
As mentioned by Adelman, Strawther had a good game offensively, but the bench struggled to keep the Magic from pouring in points. Seven of Denver's 16 turnovers came from their bench, which is more than the Magic had as a team (6).
What Should Denver Do?
Tim Hardaway Jr. was the only Nuggets starter to have a negative plus-minus, so how could the Nuggets look to alter their rotation?
With so many injuries, there aren't many options, but it could be time for Denver to try out DaRon Holmes III in the rotation. Their 2024 first-round pick and an All-American at Dayton, he has been dominating the G League, averaging 19.0 points, 7.5 assists, and 4.5 rebounds through his first two regular-season games.
The Nets are really the only game in Denver's next six contests that they should be able to take care of comfortably, but it's also the first time Michael Porter Jr. will see his old team. Braun could be returning soon, but Denver has to find ways to get production out of more players than just Murray and Jokic on a nightly basis.