Dunking With Wolves
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The Minnesota Timberwolves should take a cue from the Denver Nuggets

By Ben Beecken

DENVER, CO - MARCH 12: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets celebrates after scoring on Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the Minnesota Timberwolves. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - MARCH 12: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets celebrates after scoring on Karl-Anthony Towns #32 of the Minnesota Timberwolves. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) /
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Minnesota Timberwolves, Nikola Jokic
DENVER, CO – JANUARY 19: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets looks on during the game against the Indiana Pacers. Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The Second-Rounders

For a long time, second round draft picks were a massive inefficiency. The on-base percentage of the NBA, if you will.

That started to shift as savvy teams realized that guaranteeing contracts to late first-rounders afforded far less flexibility than non-guaranteed contracts to guys being drafted only a few slots later.

The hit rate on second-round picks is understandably much lower, of course. But finding a rotational regular in the second round can be an absolute boon to a team’s cap sheet. Finding a star in the second round? One might dare say it’s priceless.

The Denver Nuggets did just that in 2014. After drafting and trading McDermott in the first round, Denver held the No. 41 pick, the 11th of the second round. They took Serbian 7-footer Nikola Jokic, and it changed the course of the team’s next few years.

Jokic came over to the United States for the 2015-16 season and was a part-time starter averaging 10 points, seven rebounds and 2.4 assists in only 21.7 minutes per game. By the next season, Jokic was putting up 16.7 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 4.9 assists per game as a 21-year-old.

Jokic made his first All-Star team last year and is universally thought of as one of the 12 best players in the game. Consistent 3-point shooting and bouts with foul trouble are the only major hills left to conquer for Jokic as he appears to be set as the Nuggets’ best player for years to come.

The other major second-round success from the Nuggets came in 2017, on the heels of trading Mitchell to Utah.

With the No. 51 pick in the draft, the Nuggets picked point guard Monte Morris of Iowa State. Now in his third season, Morris has proven to be one of the better backup point guards in the league, shooting 40.5 percent on 3-point attempts for his career.

While the Nuggets have “only” hit on two second-round picks over the last few years, when those hits include an All-Star and a key contributor off the bench, it’s safe to say that they’ve done a good job maximizing the lottery tickets that second-round picks truly are.

Now, on to the area in which the Nuggets have truly made their hay: trades.

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