Welcome to part 2 of the Denver Stiffs “Who Knows What The Nuggets Will Do” NBA Draft Primer 2025! As I said in Part 1 of this Draft Primer (available HERE) the Nuggets currently have no picks in this draft. I repeat: unless something changes, there is nothing for Denver to do currently in the 2025 NBA draft. Denver has tradable players (again, once they have a named GM) as well as a 2031 pick that could be swapped to bring draft assets closer to Denver’s contention window, including this year.
A second-rounder could come back in a trade for a player, or a future pick, or simply be purchased by the Kroenkes with cold, hard cash. Would they cough up 3 or 4 million dollars for the right to draft one of these players? I don’t know. But purchasing a pick is something that doesn’t count against the cap, and they can’t do it if and when this team hits the second apron – so if they are going to do it, this is a good year for it.
As with Part 1 that covered the first round, this rule remains important: no second-contract guys. Peyton Watson was (and is) a second-contract guy: someone who needs the time to grow his game after very minimal college contributions. If Denver is maximizing its window for Nikola Jokic, then it needs players who can help now, not 4 playoff runs from now.
So with that said… here are some options for the second round. These are players I would expect to land between 25-45.
Fringe First / Second Rounders
The Big: Johni Broome, 23 year old F/C, Auburn. Broome has a very wide range of projected draft slots and outcomes, but I like him. He is not a jumper or an elite athlete and at 6’9.25 without shoes and a 7 foot wingspan he’s not the biggest center either despite his obvious strength, but he a monster rebounder and blocks anyone in range. He moves enough, he has good footwork in the paint and a quick second jump, but he’s gonna be a drop coverage big who gets his blocks on positioning and anticipation rather than skying above the rim. He’s in a difficult category to judge: NBA big men who rely on brains and craftiness and can be liabilities in a switch situation are hard to pin down for their value. But Denver already has one and are better-positioned than most to judge the worth of a big with good touch who can bully other bigs in one direction and then pivot to a soft 10-foot paint jumper or a dump off pass to the corner. He has a DeMarcus Cousins skillset, the questions is what he can get out of it with fewer natural gifts.
Broome is smart and capable, an excellent playmaking big who has a knack on the boards and with timed blocks. He has a little bit of a size issue (can he handle the true 7-footers in the NBA or the speedier power forwards?) and slower feet than you would like, but If Denver can’t find a better big on the market than DeAndre Jordan then maybe they need to draft someone who can score some and box out and play with some muscle inside while also hitting open corner threes. Does Denver want a rookie front court for the bench? I think Holmes and Broome would be very complementary, but I’m not the one drafting and Broome probably goes pretty high in the second if some team in the late-first doesn’t bite. He just has the look of a decade-long grinder like Taj Gibson or Daniel Theis to me with the potential for more, and I have no problem betting on the college monster to have enough translatable NBA skills.
The Wing Defender: RJ Luis Jr., 22 year old SG/SF, St Johns You want a swingman defender to replace a potentially-traded Peyton Watson? Luis at 6’6 barefoot with a 6’10.5 wingspan can handle a lot of those duties. He can get some spectacular blocks using his length and athleticism, but does most of his perimeter work before players penetrate to the hoop. Luis works better as a team defender than a one-on-one stopper but he can navigate screens and keep his man from getting the clearance to take open shots. He has a non-stop motor and will hound people on the perimeter to prevent penetration, and runs breaks well with the finishes Denver desperately needs. His 3-ball is awkwardly deliberate and not yet a sure thing, and his cold streaks on the floor are absolutely frigid, but he is a hooper. If he had a three-point shot he would go higher, because as it is he is a 2-and-D guy with the hope for a 3-and-D down the line.
Luis has a habit of taking poor-efficiency shots which he will make when hot, but he’s an instance where his pro role of defending three positions and taking corner 3s, rebounding and running in transition and getting some nice chase-down blocks could suit him better than the college hero role. Doing less and doing it full-speed might unlock him, but either way his defensive skills could get him immediate court time.
The Shooter: Koby Brea, 22 year old SG/SF, Kentucky. 6’6 with a slightly-negative 6’5.25 wingspan and average athleticism, Brea is not going to wow you with defensive efficiency or rebounding. He is out there to shoot, and he can absolutely shoot the cover off the ball. He shot 43.5% from deep last year for Kentucky and 49.8% the year before for Dayton, averaging 6 attempts a game across those seasons. Whether spotting up, hitting the step-back, spot-up or off a screen, his motion is incredibly smooth and reliable. He’s more of a Malik Beasley type where the deep ball is what you want and also almost all of what you get – but that’s absolutely an NBA-level skill worth having.
His consistency is what Denver has wanted from Julian Strawther but hasn’t yet gotten, and it’s something the bench desperately needs. Somebody who can make buckets reliably would help the rotation so much, even just to keep the bench minutes even without Jokic by having a scorer who can actually score. If you’re gonna be a one-trick pony it better be a good trick. I believe Koby’s shooting is.
Final Thoughts
There are players in this draft who can fill roles for Denver. In the first round they can think ceiling, in the second it’s more about floor, but either way the Nuggets are desperately looking for players who have a plus NBA skill they can employ without falling apart. Can you do an NBA Thing at an NBA level against NBA competition? First round players are about finding playoff-rotation guys, second round picks are more to take the load off the starters during the season. Having a deeper rotation is absolutely vital to the Nuggets winning another title in the Jokic era.
Denver has invested in several tweeners have not been able to overcome their limitations yet in order to provide real rotation minutes, let alone significant playoff assistance. Hunter Tyson is too small to play the 4 and not quick or skilled enough to be a 3. Jalen Pickett can’t handle on-ball pressure as a 1 but is too small to be a reliable 2 despite being built like a tank. Neither could help at all in the playoffs 2 years after being drafted, and unfortunately Julian Strawther hasn’t been able to stop fouling long enough to see the floor much even when healthy.
Denver needs players that can pull reliable minutes and fill roles. Whether it’s a big, a defensive wing, or a shooter the Nuggets have to have guys who add deployable skills. As I have said, they don’t have a draft pick at this point. If they are going to add one, it absolutely is not to take a flier on a 19 year old who might be good in a few years. If Denver is trading (even more of) the future, it is to add someone they identified as a definite contributor right now who hopefully has growth left to find in his game as well. It is absolutely crucial that they stop wasting these amazing Nikola Jokic years, and that will require both luck and skill this offseason. Here’s hoping the find both, especially if they buy into the draft.
