Denver Nuggets Shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was recently asked which Western Conference teams he sees as the biggest threats to Denver’s NBA title defense. Despite naming three teams, the two-time champion left out two of last year’s West semifinalists, the LA Lakers and Golden State Warriors.
With 17 games remaining, the Nuggets (45-20) are tied with the OKC Thunder for first in the West and second in the league. Thus, they are considered the favorites to qualify for the NBA Finals again. However, with the West’s top eight seeds separated by just 8.0 games, Denver will likely face a tough road to the Finals.
During an interview with Bleacher Report’s Chris Haynes, Caldwell-Pope was asked which teams in the West could pose the toughest challenge to the Nuggets’ title defense. The 31-year-old named the sixth-seeded Phoenix Suns (38-27) and third-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves (45-21).
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He added that OKC is a hidden dark horse despite being a young and inexperienced team.
“I would say a healthy Phoenix [and] a healthy Minnesota because Minnesota has always been tough, even last year,” Caldwell-Pope said. “And there’s a lot of young teams, like OKC, that’s also on the rise, man.”
Denver beat Minnesota (4-1) and Phoenix (4-2) in the first and second rounds of last year’s playoffs, with Caldwell-Pope playing a key role. However, both teams could pose bigger threats to the Nuggets this year.
The Timberwolves have the league’s No. 1 defense (108.3 defensive rating). Meanwhile, when healthy, the Suns have arguably a top 3 pick in the NBA (Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal).
Nonetheless, Caldwell-Pope failed to recognize Denver’s opponent for the 2023 West Finals, the Lakers, whom they swept 4-0. He also snubbed the Warriors, who Los Angeles eliminated 4-2 in the West semifinals last year.
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Nuggets could face Lakers or Warriors in first round of 2024 playoffs
LA (36-30) and Golden State (34-30) are battling for play-in position, occupying ninth and 10th spots in the West, respectively. So these are not locks for the playoffs. However, both teams have proven themselves and won NBA titles.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope witnessed the ceiling of a LeBron James-led Lakers team as he started on Los Angeles’ 2020 title team. Meanwhile, Steph Curry has led the Warriors to four championships since 2015.
It is widely believed that the Western seeds would prefer to avoid the Lakers and Warriors in the first round. However, given where the Nuggets stand in the standings, there’s a good chance they could face either team if they make it past the play-in.
If so, it remains to be seen whether Caldwell-Pope’s comments will provide message board material for either team.
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