Their seasons have barely taken a breath, and it was a gasp.
Are we seeing the old Nuggets and Avs instead of the Nuggets and Avs of old?
Remember when these teams won championships in 2023 and 2022? That seems like a long time ago. Once annual title contenders, they are advancing in dog years.
At this rate I expect Bernie the St. Bernard to have more wrinkles than a Sharpei by Thanksgiving and Rocky to look like Aslan from “The Chronicles of Narnia” by the All-Star break.
With age comes wisdom. But the Nuggets and Avs don’t seem smarter. They seem grumpier.
How is it only October and both teams have already had multiple games where it looked like they did not give a crap?
Left wing Gabriel Landeskog (92) of the Colorado Avalanche takes the puck around the corner during the third period of a 5-2 Avalanche win over the New Jersey Devils Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, at Ball Arena in Denver. (Photo by Timothy Hurst/The Denver Post)
One moment Nikola Jokic is exhibiting diva behavior by saying fans who boo are not “welcome anymore” at Ball Arena. The next, the captain Gabe Landeskog is describing a recent road performance thusly: “We sucked.”
In a world full of overreactions, it is always fun to play panic or patience. The calendar demands perspective, deep exhales and nothing resembling drawn conclusions.
But let’s be honest, the red button should be kept within arm’s length because neither of these teams look like they are going to be hoisting championship trophies this summer.
For the Nuggets, it is not unexpected. A fourth seed in the Western Conference would represent a successful regular season. At 2-2, it is easy to scream, “Too soon!”
But the product represents a disconnect between what fans want and what the players see (save for truth-teller Aaron Gordon).
DENVER , CO – OCTOBER 24: Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets brings the ball up court as Nikola Jokic (15) looks at Christian Braun (0) during the second quarter against the New Orleans Pelicans at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado on Saturday, October 24, 2026. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
The last image we had of the Nuggets was getting trounced by the Minnesota Timberwolves, whose backcourt was maxing out co-pays on their insurance plan.
No insult by a coach or player incited anger as Minnesota punched the Nuggets in the mouth and laughed in their face.
Coach David Adelman insisted the analytics showed they played good defense. The manalytics revealed they got punked.
And nothing has changed. The fans are not blind to this.
When the opponent turns the paint into a conga line to the basket, the lack of effort and pride is impossible to miss. The players like to wave it off as no big deal. They are good at comebacks, if you haven’t heard.
That used to come across as charming stubbornness and resilience. Now, it seems delusional.
After Oklahoma City ran away from them in the season opener, after New Orleans skunked them in the first half of the home opener and after Golden State’s Yaxel Lendeborg trampled them on Monday, it cannot be dismissed as a bad start.
The Nuggets look like a bad team, headed for play-in games. Their two wins are against the Pelicans, the NBA’s Miami Dolphins.
I don’t think the Nuggets are awful. But the signs are troubling.
For instance, why does Trevon Brazile, so athletic and willing to drain an open 3, suddenly feel irreplaceable? Is he that good? Or is it because he is shining in comparison to the players around him?
Are the Nuggets so poorly constructed that Cam Johnson turning his right ankle in Oklahoma City led to dreadful defensive quarters and miserable 3-point shooting?
Jokic remains a top-five player. Jamal Murray is an elite shot maker, though he will keep struggling against younger teams equipped to guard him full-court without help from Gordon to bring the ball up.
After that, there are a lot of questions.
Gordon must buy into sitting out one game of back-to-backs to stay healthy. Even then, he does not seem as bouncy as in years past. Christian Braun buried three 3s in Wednesday’s win over the Pelicans, but is 5-for-21 from beyond the arc. DeMar DeRozan is still finding his niche off the bench.
Of course, it will take time to find traction. The problem is that we are seeing the same problems. The lack of depth has been exposed. There are limited ball-handling options.
That is why I suggested they consider major moves this offseason, like acquiring Jaylen Brown, which was realistic and close to happening, or signing LeBron James, which was not on either count.
The Nuggets won a title with talent and grit. Now, the pieces no longer seem to fit.
Could that change? Yes. But by how much and how long before Adelman’s seat starts to simmer? The Nuggets boast the 25th-oldest team, with an average age of 27.45 years. And they rank 26th in defensive rating, looking disinterested when challenging shots around the rim.
More than ever, these numbers seem tied together.
The obvious concern is that the window has closed and this roster needs an overhaul around Jokic to reset the culture.
The Avs are more perplexing because they harbor realistic championship expectations. When we last saw them, they were taking crowbars to the shins from the Golden Knights.
Like the Nuggets, they decided to run it back, rewarding coach Jared Bednar with a four-year extension. Aside from a few minor additions, the Avs are the same team with similar issues.
The power play is the equivalent of a soggy iPhone sitting in a bed of rice. Worse, it is so predictable. And Colorado remains beatable anytime an opponent throttles the game down and wins in the middle of the ice.
Maybe the most recent win over the New Jersey Devils, which featured Nathan MacKinnon shot out of a cannon, will trigger something.
But the early results are damning. Last year, the Avs didn’t lose five times in regulation until game 46. This season, it happened by the 12th game.
Already, the players have bemoaned their own lack of competitiveness. Bednar admitted that “If I have to go into the room and motivate our team or an individual all the time, then they shouldn’t be here.”
He insists they all know the standard and what it looks like when it isn’t being met.
But what if they are just not good enough? What if the want-to, that razor’s edge, is gone? What if they can’t outscore teams like they did in the past, slowed by an average age of 29.8, the highest in the NHL?
Around this time of year, I know buying Halloween candy means buying it twice.
It is time the Nuggets and Avs start being honest with themselves.
They are not who they were a few years ago. Time remains undefeated. And it’s going to get late early if these two teams don’t start playing with more effort and urgency.
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