Fantasy Sports

If the Denver Nuggets Blow It Up, Nikola Jokic Will Break Fantasy Basketball—Again

Alan Goldsher|
Will Nikola Jokic's rock domination numbers blow up advanced box scores in 2025-26?
Will Nikola Jokic's rock domination numbers blow up advanced box scores in 2025-26? | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

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Denver Nuggets

Two calendar years removed from winning an NBA championship, this iteration of the Denver Nuggets might be toast.

  • Their 2024-25 regular season record of 50-32 was a relatively significant step back from the previous season’s 57-25.
  • They flamed out in the Western Conference semis for the second consecutive year, and the fourth out of the last seven.
  • Next season, their top four players will rake in a combined salary of over $161 million, a total that, all by its lonesome, pushes the Nuggets over the salary cap.
  • The NBA’s Western Conference is really freakin’ good.

All of which means it might be time for this iteration of the Denver Nuggets to shut it down.

Numbers Don’t Joke

Unless they make an inter-sport space-time-continuum-busting blockbuster that lands them Shoehei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and big-time cash considerations, the Nugs would never, ever, ever consider moving All-World center, eternal MVP candidate, and fantasy basketball deity Nikola Jokic.

That being the case, a Mile High rebuild would likely see Jamal Murray and/or Michael Porter Jr. and/or Russell Westbrook, and/or Aaron Gordon jettisoned in exchange for high-end draft capital, and/or a young starter, and/or salary cap relief.

So it’s possible that the 2025-26 Denver Nuggets’ roster will consist of the Joker, Christian Braun, Peyton Watson, and a bunch of other dudes.

This all would thrill fantasy hoops players to no end.

Because Niko Jokic, much to the chagrin of fake basketball fans throughout the land, is far too selfish.

Just Give Me the Damn Ball!

Jokic’s usage rate—which, at 29.5%, is ranked 19th in the Association—is straight-up reasonable; you’d expect a guy who has the ball in his hands that much to be closer in percentage to ball hogs like Giannis Antetokounmpo (35.2%, second place), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (34.8%, third), or Luka Doncic (33.9%, fourth).

So if Murray, Porter, Westbrook, or Gordon are sent packing, the Nuggets will be more reliant on the future Hall of Famer than ever, so chances are good that next season, Jokic will dominate the rock. And not just dominate. DOMINATE.

As per NBA.com’s fantasy rankings, Jokic finished 2024-25 with the league’s third-most fantasy points (2,071), a goodly ways behind Gilgeous-Alexander (2,484), and a scootch behind Anthony Edwards (2,177).

Let’s say for the sake of argument, a retooled Nuggets roster has Jokic handling the ball at a Greek Freakish level of 35.2%. The ratio of usage (yes, that’s a thing) would lead to a 2025-26 Joker fantasy point total of 2,472, which would likely put him atop NBA.com’s fantasy scoring list for the fifth time in the last six seasons.

So right now, there are a few zillion fantasy basketball players who are begging for the Nuggets to clean house.

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Alan Goldsher
ALAN GOLDSHER

Alan Goldsher has written about sports for Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Apple, Playboy, NFL.com, and NBA.com, and he’s the creator of the Chicago Sports Stuff Substack. He’s the bestselling author of 15 books, and the founder/CEO of Gold Note Records. Alan lives in Chicago, where he writes, makes music, and consumes and creates way too much Bears content. You can visit him at http://www.AlanGoldsher.com and http://x.com/AlanGoldsher.

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