If the Nuggets collapse, everyone but Nikola Jokic should be on the hot seat

The Denver Nuggets are in trouble.

That’s not exactly a secret.

Losers of four games in a row, the NBA play-in tournament is a real possibility. Something that was unfathomable just a week ago could happen.

And if Denver loses both those games, poof, their season is over. Without even getting to play a real playoff series.

That would obviously be the worst case scenario, but with the way this team is trending right now, it’s also not impossible to imagine happening. If that’s the case, or the Nuggets go with a whimper in Round 1 should they make the actual postseason, everyone but Nikola Jokic should be on the hot seat.

Everyone.

From GM Calvin Booth to head coach Michael Malone. From Jamal Murray to Michael Porter Jr. to Aaron Gordon. All of them are candidates to be fired or traded. Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke should make massive changes and rebuild his front office, coaching staff and roster.

Jokic is that good, and right now Denver is absolutely wasting him. Just look at his stat-lines the last three games. Contests in which the Nuggets have gone 0-3.

Jokic last three games:

61 PTS | 10 REB | 10 AST
33 PTS | 12 REB | 9 AST
41 PTS | 15 REB | 13 AST

0-3. pic.twitter.com/zJNIoqXhuj

— StatMuse (@statmuse) April 7, 2025

Like, what are we doing?

This man is the best basketball player on the planet and it’s not even close. If this were swimming, golf or tennis, he’d win every single race or tournament. If basketball was an individual sport, everyone else would be playing for second.

Unfortunately, it’s not.

The Nuggets look lost. Murray is more hurt than anyone realized. Porter is just a guy. Gordon has lost a step, although he still has the heart. Even Christian Braun, who’s putting up great offensive numbers, doesn’t appear to be the same tenacious defender he was in his first or second NBA season.

Booth has built a roster that’s not good enough to win another championship. The Dario Saric signing has been a complete and total bust. He hasn’t added pieces to help Jokic, rather roll the same guys out there as they get worse and the Serbian sensation somehow gets better.

Malone’s message clearly has become the scariest word in sports: stale. It doesn’t look like the players listen to him, and the head coach is constantly flabbergasted. That’s leading him to make bad decisions, like closing with Russell Westbrook against the Wolves last week.

As you surely know by now, Westbrook missed a remarkably easy layup in 2OT, then fouled a Minnesota shooter near the buzzer, and the Nuggets somehow lost. That was the catalyst to this four-game losing streak, a stubborn head coach trusting the veteran over a younger player like Jalen Pickett who would’ve been a better option.

We’ll always be grateful that Murray, Gordon and Porter helped us throw a parade in 2023. But this could’ve been a dynasty. And right now, they’re not up to the task of playing next to Jokic. Trade one, two or all three this summer. If the Nuggets complete the collapse.

And the reason “if” is italicized is simple, because only a fool would count out Jokic. Who knows, maybe the other guys wake up these last few games and then flip a switch in the playoffs? That might feel like a pipe dream, but Jokic is just good enough to drag the Nuggets to the NBA Finals or even a title if he finally starts getting some help.

But if not? Blow it up. The GM, head coach and rest of the roster are all on the table. Make sweeping changes like we’ve never seen before.

Unfortunately, that’s the only option at this stage in the game. Jokic isn’t getting any younger. And him winning only one championship in Denver would feel criminal for the level of basketball he’s currently playing.