This one hurts. A lot.
The Denver Nuggets appeared to have found something special over the last month. After trading for Aaron Gordon and pushing their chips in to contend for a championship, the Nuggets once again made the national plea: “Take us seriously! We’re dangerous! We’re for real!”
This wasn’t the first time the Nuggets had craved respect that wasn’t given. Back in 2018-19, the Nuggets won 54 games, earning the second seed behind the Golden State Warriors before earning the actual trust of the NBA community at large. The term “frauds” was thrown out there consistently, and it wasn’t until the Nuggets finally won their first round series over an admittedly average San Antonio Spurs that many NBA observers gave the Nuggets their due.