The Denver Nuggets have unsurprisingly been one of the NBA’s top teams this season, and for the most part, have been sitting in second place in power rankings throughout their 2025-26 campaign so far.
However, a shocking home loss to the Sacramento Kings last week has caused a reasonable slide.
At 13-4 on the season, the Nuggets now sit in third place in ESPN’s latest NBA power rankings, allowing the Detroit Pistons to leapfrog them for the number-two spot.
This small dip could not be much more insignificant on the grand scheme of things, but it is always interesting to see how the experts stack the Nuggets up against the best in the league.
No reason to stress in Denver
Nov 11, 2025; Sacramento, California, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (32) argues a call with a referee during the second quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images
The Nuggets are now playing without two starters for the next several weeks, as Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun are both sidelined. Both Gordon and Braun are significant contributors for Denver, and it is no shock that the Nuggets might drop a few unexpected games when they are out of the lineup, as we saw on Saturday against the Kings.
Luckily, the Nuggets have some impressive depth pieces to put a Band-Aid on those two absences. Most notably, the emergence of Peyton Watson has been astonishing.
“Peyton Watson, who is headed toward restricted free agency after failing to reach an agreement on an extension of his rookie contract with the Nuggets, will have an extended stretch as a starter to showcase himself with Christian Braun and Aaron Gordon out for weeks because of injuries,” ESPN’s Tim Bontemps wrote.
“Watson has averaged 16.7 points and 6.7 rebounds while starting the past six games, highlighted by the two highest-scoring performances of his career (32 and 27 points in wins over the Pelicans and Grizzlies, respectively). Watson is shooting 40% from 3-point range this season, which could be the key to getting the kind of contract he’s seeking.”
Peyton Watson SHINED in Denver’s win over New Orleans:
⚒️ 32 PTS (career-high)
⚒️ 12 REB
⚒️ 5-9 3PM
⚒️ 13-19 FGM pic.twitter.com/OJphopFMFs
— NBA (@NBA) November 20, 2025
Even with Braun and Gordon sidelined, the Nuggets have three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic to lean on, along with co-star Jamal Murray and other difference-makers like Watson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, and Bruce Brown.
While the Nuggets have suffered a one-spot drop in the latest power rankings and have lost two of their last five games, there is no doubt that the Nuggets will remain a top title contender, especially when healthy.
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