Strange but True: The Denver Nuggets are heading to the NBA Finals

By Brad Shawgo

CNN

I’m struggling to wrap my head around the following, factual statement: The Denver Nuggets will play in the 2023 NBA Finals. It’s one of those sports things that seems a little weird, even if it’s not hard to believe. The Nuggets have been one of the best teams in the NBA for a handful of seasons now and 2022-2023 has been no exception. They won a western conference best 53 games this season, good enough for fourth most overall in the NBA. They had a real shot to be where they are now all along but given their recent postseason history, it still just seems a little strange.

While being considered a threat in the western conference and winning an average of nearly 49 games per season, the Nuggets have failed to win the conference each of the four previous seasons. Going back even further into the franchise’s history, they have never won the west until this season. In fact, they have only reached the conference finals a total of five seasons including this season.

So you can see where I’m coming from when I say it seems a bit strange to see the Nuggets heading to the NBA Finals. Given that they have never even been there makes it hard to find a comparison. It was odd to see the Tampa Bay Rays reach the World Series in 2008 but they were only playing in their 11th season in franchise history. The Nuggets are wrapping up their 47th season in the NBA (They played in the ABA from 1969 to 1976) so they have been around awhile now. 

You could say watching the Bengals in the Super Bowl last year didn’t seem right given how bad they have been over the last few decades but despite never winning the big game, they did reach the Super Bowl twice in the 1980’s. If it were reality, the best comparison in the NFL would be, hands down, the Detroit Lions reaching the Super Bowl, as they have failed to do so since the Super Bowl’s inception in 1967. Even in the current NHL season, the Florida Panthers, just one win away from reaching the Stanley Cup, made it there once before in 1996 in only the franchise’s third season.

I'm sure there are other examples and comparisons out there but you can see the rarity of a team never reaching their respective league’s championship. Due to this, when the Nuggets do take the court in game one of the NBA Finals on June 1, likely their own in Ball Arena, it will be odd to see that NBA Finals logo patch on the back of their jerseys. It would look better if they still put the patches on the front and improve the look of it (that’s a blog for another time) but hey, the dominant gold of the patch will go well with Denver’s look.  

Strangeness aside, the 2022-2023 Denver Nuggets have taken the franchise off the list of zero Finals appearances. For good reason. This is a great team. Yes, Nikola Jokic, a 2 time NBA MVP, is at the center of the roster but he has stellar pieces around him, such as Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordan to just name a few. On top of this, Michael Malone is regarded as one of the better coaches in the NBA. 

They will likely meet the Miami Heat in the Finals, given that the Boston Celtics don’t miraculously complete a 3-0 comeback in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Heat won’t be an easy match up for the Nuggets. Yes, on paper Denver is the better team but it just kind of feels like Jimmy Butler’s moment along with the Heat being an experienced team with a great coach and a whole lot of grit. I’m telling you, this Heat team takes the term, merciless competitor, to a new level. But like I said the Nuggets are a great team in their own right and it should be an intersting NBA Finals. For now though, congrats to the Denver Nuggets, the city of Denver, and the team’s fan base for reaching new heights. Whatever happens now is just icing on the cake right?