There are just over two weeks of regular-season action in the NBA, and it is slowly becoming clear which teams will continue their fight for the title and which will try their luck in the draft lottery. The situation in both conferences is more than interesting, and the only thing that is certain is that we are about to witness one of the most balanced battles for supremacy and a ticket to the grand finals.
Kevin Garnett , the legendary forward turned analyst and media personality, offered his take on which team he would keep an eye on, especially in the stacked Western Conference. His pick among the teams that can definitely surprise and overthrow the Oklahoma City Thunder 's dominance? The 2023 NBA champions.
"Man, I watched the Nuggets for the sixth time straight. I'm watching, you know, the teams that ain't nobody talking about, the Clippers. I'm talking about just about watching everybody raise their play, P! Like, the Suns…" Garnett pointed out in the recent episode of "Ticket and The Truth" podcast.
"When you start getting in the West, when you get to like, seventh, eighth seed. Those teams are not only beatable, but them teams can beat you. Minnesota's in there. OKC leads the whole thing, but it's a bunch of candidates, man," he added.
With a quick glance at the Western Conference standings, the situation is, well, still pretty messy. Even though 10 teams have clinched at least a play-in spot, eight of them are still fighting for better seeding. Among them are the Nuggets. And Garnett singled them out from that group because, rightly or wrongly, they have slightly fallen in the pecking order, both in public perception and in the standings.
Currently sitting in fourth place with a 46-28 record, the team from the Mile High City has spent most of the season dealing with injuries, from Nikola Jokic to Aaron Gordon , Cam Johnson and Payton Watson, and even Jamal Murray missed time. It all affected their rhythm (or lack thereof), and people shifted their attention toward the Thunder, Spurs and Lakers .
However, when they are fully healthy and ready, the Nuggets are one of the squads that have plenty of firepower, especially off the bench. That is exactly what KG sees as their biggest strength, and why he labeled them as a team to watch coming out of the chaos in the West.
"Watch out for the Nuggets, man. Ain't nobody talking about the Nuggets, too. They've been hit with an injury bug lately, they are the quiet monster nobody talking about," KG emphasized.
Led by Jokic , who keeps producing video game numbers night in and night out, along with the steady support of Murray, who can catch fire and decide a game or two on his own in a seven-game series, the 2023 champions are nothing to overlook. And while most of the attention is focused on the increasingly tight MVP race, where Victor Wembanyama has overtaken Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on the official NBA ladder, with Luka Doncic slowly creeping in, Denver, like a true veteran squad, is timing its form to peak when the games matter the most.
It remains to be seen who they will face once the real action starts, but one thing is certain: the competition will be tougher than ever, with each team having a legitimate chance to pull off an upset and make a deep run. And who will ultimately come out on top, remains to be seen.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Mar 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
