Denver Nuggets Playoff History

As part of the NBA’s 1967 expansion, the Denver Nuggets were founded to be included in the Western Conference of the NBA. The team is part of the Northwest Division. Their home center, known as Ball Arena has a seating capacity of 18000 spectators and was previously called the Pepsi Center. Ann Walton Kroenke is the owner of the franchise, with Tim Connelly serving at the position of President of Basketball Operations.

Tim Connelly is credited with the success derived from the Nuggets’ roster construction. The Denver Nuggets are coached by Michael Malone who is widely popular for his tactical approach coupled with strong player development. The Nuggets boast a rich pool of historically great players such as Alex English and Dikimbe Mutombu. The team is now led by two time MVP Nikola Jokic and star point guard Jamal Murray. Roleplayers like Michael Porter Jr. and dunk master Aaron Gordon add more skill to the roster, making the team holistically well-constructed.

How many times has the Denver Nuggets made the playoffs?

The Denver Nuggets have a 64% success rate of reaching the NBA playoffs after the regular season games every year. In the Franchise’s 56 year old history, they have made it to the playoffs 36 times from 1967 till 2023. As part of the ABA, the Nuggets’ postseason runs typically ended in the conference semifinals. During the initial years from 1975, the Nuggets made deep playoff runs, losing only the conference titles. This was followed by a variation in post season success where the team found itself losing at different stages of the postseason.

The Nuggets witnessed several turning points in their history. One of the most prevalent amongst these was the acquisition of stars like Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony. These players’ scoring prowess and display of talent in the sport, led to a great deal of optimism for the Denver Nuggets in terms of growing the basketball culture and securing a championship. However, due to the Western Conference being extremely competitive, the team failed to bring a championship to the city. Furthermore, while players that the Nuggets brought in were brilliant scorers, they were lesser known for their defensive abilities.

2014 saw the Nuggets make a franchise altering decision by drafting Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets developed Nikola Jokic into one of the most dominant and versatile centers over the years. His abilities as a playmaking center, changed the team’s playing style and the Nuggets went on to focus roster construction around Jokic.

The Nuggets missed the playoffs from the time they drafted Jokic till 2018. With the addition of strong players like Jamal Murray and depth to the roster, the Nuggets began to see postseason success from the 2018 season under Head Coach Michael Malone. These efforts culminated into the Nuggets winning the 2022-23 NBA championship bringing the city its first ever Title.

Denver Nuggets Playoff Record

The Denver Nuggets have a rather modest playoff record, with 125 wins in their postseason history and 167 losses. Since the expansion, the Nuggets have played 205 playoff games of which they have won 81 and lost 124. In the league, they stand 20th in terms of playoff appearances and 21st in terms of number of playoff wins.

In the recent years, the Nuggets have turned the tides to a certain extent by making deep playoff runs and therefore, having a better win percentage.

The team’s most memorable playoff run is considered to be the 2008-09 NBA season. This was the season where the Nuggets reached the Conference Finals for the first time in almost two and a half decades. This brought energy and excitement in the city. Fuelled by the performances of players like Chauncley Billups and Carmelo Anthony entertained spectators and ensured the continuation of the team’s success in the postseason.

Number of conference championships won by Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets have won the Western Conference Championship once in their history. This also happens to be the year when the Nuggets won the NBA championship. The Nuggets have made it to the Conference Finals seven times. This indicates that the Nuggets have had a success rate of 14% when it comes to winning the conference title.

Number of NBA championships won by Denver Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets have won one NBA Championship. They clinched their first title in the 2022-23 NBA season. They faced off against the Miami Heat, led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. The Nuggets had a dream NBA season, finishing at the top of the conference at the end of the regular season and going on to win the finals.

The team displayed grit and determination aside from stellar performances across each and every game of the playoffs. None of the series in their playoff run went above 6 games. The Nuggets faced the Timberwolves in the first round and beat them 4-1. They moved on to conquer the Phoenix Suns in the second round. This series went to six games. They played the conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers who they swept in order to reach the NBA finals.

Denver Nuggets Last Playoff Appearance

The Denver Nuggets made their most recent playoff appearance in the 2022-23 NBA season. In the playoffs, they faced formidable opponents including the Timberwolves led by Anthony Edwards and Karl Anthony Towns, the Phoenix Suns led by Kevin Durant and Devin Booker and the Los Angeles Lakers led by Lebron James and Anthony Davis.

Looking at the profiles of these teams, it can be said that the Nuggets’ postseason run was far from easy. However, the Nuggets displayed a higher ;level of basketball that confused opponents and brought victory to the Nuggets. In the finals, the Nuggets played against Jimmy Butler led Miami Heat.

The finals could be thought of as not being very exciting considering that the series was over in just five games. Nikola Jokic was named finals MVP for his stellar performance in averaging 30.2 points, 14 rebound, 7.2 assists and 1.4 blocks per game.

What is the biggest playoff series comeback in the Denver Nuggets history?

1993

The Nuggets played against the Seattle Supersonics in the first round of the Western Conference post season games. The Nuggets were down 2-0 in the series before fuelling a comeback to win the series in the next 3 games. The Nuggets’ success in this series are attributed to the stellar performances of Dikimbe Mutombu and Mahmoud Abdul Rouf.

2022-23

Winning the NBA title and bringing the city its first ever NBA championship is bound to be one of the most memorable runs in the Nugget’s postseason history. The roster construction combined with standout performances by Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray behind the coaching brilliance of Michael Malone have brought optimism and excitement around basketball within the city.