The Denver Nuggets sit third in the Western Conference at 21-8, but their depth will be put to the test once again after seeing starting forward Cam Johnson suffer a knee injury.
Johnson sustained a bone bruise in his right knee in a loss to the Mavs on Tuesday and while an MRI revealed no structural damage, he will be re-evaluated in 4-6 weeks with the injury, the team announced on Thursday. Johnson is averaging 11.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game on 46.1/42.9/81.0 shooting splits in 28 starts this season.
With Johnson out, the Nuggets are now down three starters. Aaron Gordon remains sidelined with a hamstring strain and Christian Braun is still a week away from his re-evaluation after spraining his ankle earlier this season.
Despite the absences of Gordon and Braun, the Nuggets have managed to stay near the top of the Western Conference thanks to the sensational play of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray, as well as getting strong contributions from their bench after bolstering their depth this offseason. With Johnson out, that depth will be put under even greater stress, as will Jokić and Murray to continue producing the majority of Denver’s offensive production.
Without Johnson, the Nuggets will have to ask more of their wing rotation and lose some more size and versatility at the forward spot. Johnson has played more power forward than small forward this season due to Gordon’s extended absence, and the likes of Peyton Watson and Spencer Jones may see more time at the four — with Zeke Nnaji and Hunter Tyson also options there from deeper down the bench.
Everything in Denver starts with their two stars, and as long as Murray and Jokić are healthy, the offense will operate at an elite level. However, their defense was already on shaky ground without Braun and Gordon and losing Johnson will make them even weaker on that end of the floor. Braun and Gordon are both nearing their timetables for re-evaluation, but will still need time to ramp up to game shape once eventually cleared.
In the meantime, the Nuggets will look to hold on to strong position in the hotly contested Western Conference playoff race. They’re only 1.5 games up on the Lakers and Timberwolves and three games ahead of the Rockets in sixth. They’ll face that Minnesota team in the nightcap of the Christmas slate in their first game without Johnson before a lengthy East coast road trip that starts in Orlando and goes to Miami, Toronto, Cleveland, Brooklyn, Philadelphia and Boston.
