Nuggets' Vision for Marvin Bagley's Role Is Coming Into Focus

The Denver Nuggets' frontcourt rotation saw a few changes over the course of their most recent offseason.

Among those adjustments was to bring in former No. 2 overall pick Marvin Bagley Jr. on a one-year, veteran minimum deal; someone who is closing in on a decade of NBA experience and provides a layer of depth in the frontcourt that Denver had lost out on with the release of veteran Jonas Valanciunas.

And Bagley provides some interesting qualities for this Nuggets roster. He's a talented offensive option inside the arc who comes off a productive 2025-26 season split between the Dallas Mavericks and Washington Wizards, really forming into a pretty solid role player, all things considered.

So the Nuggets could certainly benefit from having Bagley run around 10-15 minutes in their second unit on a nightly basis, especially if he plays to the level he was at last year.

And according to Nuggets head coach David Adelman, he seems to have a pretty solid idea of where he's going to play Bagley in terms of a position fit.

What David Adelman Said About Marvin Bagley's Positional Fit

According to Bennett Durando of the Denver Post, Adelman said that Bagley could play as the Nuggets' power forward "in a pinch," yet feels as if his game is better catered toward being a traditional center.

David Adelman says "in a pinch," Marvin Bagley is capable of playing the four, but "he's a traditional five to me."
— Bennett Durando (@BennettDurando) September 30, 2026

Bagley, since he's entered the NBA, has been someone who's flexed between the power forward and center spots. While he first entered the league playing both the four and the five, he's been able to increasingly shift down as a more traditional five in recent years.

During Bagley's rookie season with the Sacramento Kings, his minutes were a 45-55 split between power forward and center. Fast forward to his production from last season, and 98% of his minutes came from playing at the center position.

Sep 28, 2026; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Marvin Bagley III (3) during media day at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

And it was in his past season where Bagley was pretty productive statistically. He played around 20 minutes a night to average 10.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists while shooting extremely efficiently 61.6% from the field and 46.2% from three.

So with that prior production in mind, Adelman appears to have a largely similar role in mind to Bagley from what he operated in last year. He's an offensive threat on the interior who can play behind Nikola Jokic in the minutes that he's resting, but not often someone who will fit next to him or another big on the roster.

That means, when picturing Bagley's spot in the Nuggets' second unit, the fit sets up pretty nicely for everyone on paper:

Marvin Bagley can be the primary option the Nuggets lean on as their backup center, while also competing with Zeke Nnaji for minutes.
Spencer Jones will play a good chunk of the Nuggets' minutes at the four, while also shifting to the three and five in certain lineups.
DaRon Holmes will have to compete for minutes at the five, but also the four, as David Adelman mentioned earlier this week.

With that four-man group in their frontcourt rotation, the hope is that Denver has enough of a combination of size, two-way versatility, and athleticism to keep their depth afloat after an offseason where they lost a few noteworthy pieces.

Time will tell if Denver's front office did enough work to patch those holes in their second unit. But at the very least, the transition from Bagley to Valanciunas should be one that's pretty seamless, and perhaps even an upgrade.

Sign up for our free Denver Nuggets On SI newsletter, and get breaking Nuggets news delivered to your inbox daily!

Add us as a preferred source on Google