Timberwolves are smiling somewhere as Nuggets' lose-lose offseason fully kicks in

The Minnesota Timberwolves have every reason to be thrilled about their offseason. Landing LaMelo Ball should be an absolute game-changer, and they certainly improved their championship equity with this move. Minnesota's offseason gets even better when considering the lack of activity from one of its biggest rivals, the Denver Nuggets. 

After the Wolves exposed the Nuggets' lack of defense and athleticism in the first-round of the playoffs, they've decided to stand pat, only adding Marvin Bagley III thus far.

Things went from bad to worse for Denver this weekend. The Oklahoma City Thunder offered Spencer Jones a two-year $12 million contract. This put the Nuggets between a rock and a hard place. Ultimately, they matched this offer sheet and dipped into the second apron.

Denver still has to sort out Peyton Watson's restricted free agency. Now, though, they can't bring players back in a possible sign-and-trade without making a cost-cutting move beforehand. They can continue to dig into the second apron to re-sign him, but that would hurt the Nuggets' optionality and future while they still wouldn't be clear contenders. It's worth noting that the Nuggets have long opted to duck the aprons, and they are currently the lone second apron team.

Whether they re-sign Watson or not, the Nuggets will likely salary-dump one of Cameron Johnson, Aaron Gordon, or Christian Braun to dodge the second apron. The point being, Denver's chances of becoming true title contenders or even improving this offseason are slim to none, and that's great news for the Timberwolves. 

The Timberwolves should be thrilled by the Nuggets' offseason

Nikola Jokic will always help the Nuggets have a strong regular season, but as the Timberwolves proved in the playoffs, this core is no longer positioned for playoff success. 

Yes, I get it: Watson missed the first-round series, and Gordon missed a lot of it. But Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo missed the final two and a half games (essentially three games in Donte's case). Furthermore, there's a strong possibility that the Nuggets will have to get used to playing without one or both of them next season. 

While Johnson and Braun didn't have ideal seasons, salary-dumping them for nothing wouldn't magically improve all of the Nuggets' problems. Without a doubt, the Nuggets need to make some real additions. Their defense and lack of athleticism are serious issues. 

Honestly, trading Jamal Murray due to his enormous salary and poor defense could be the Nuggets' only way to improve. It's not likely that the Nuggets take this leap of faith, though.

Again, what are the Nuggets' true paths to improving? None feels like the answer, at this point.

Of course, the West is dominated by two juggernauts: the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder. Catching up to them is a difficult task, but you have to be aggressive, or else you'll get left behind. The Timberwolves understand this, and if everything goes right, LaMelo could help them accomplish their goal. 

In all fairness, Denver's cap situation put them in a difficult spot. Regardless, the fact that they aren't going to improve their flaws solidifies their spot as a good but not great team. The Timberwolves might have separated themselves from the Nuggets in a significant way this offseason. And given this, it's hard not to crack a smile. 

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