The Denver Nuggets have a rare opportunity. They are facing off against the Oklahoma City Thunder for their season opener on Thursday, but their conference rival has already played its first game of the 2026-27 campaign.
The Thunder took down the San Antonio Spurs 116-104 on the NBA's 2026-27 opening night, and now they have a quick turnaround to host the Nuggets on Thursday. While there are obvious pros to having yet to play a game for Denver, like a bit of extra rest and getting to scout your opponent, there are more concerns about what the Nuggets are heading into as they open their season.
Based on what we saw in the Thunder's huge road win against the Spurs on opening night, here are a couple of things the Nuggets are likely concerned about for their season opener on Thursday.
OKC's depth
While we already had an idea that this was the case, the Thunder proved it on Tuesday night: they have the deepest team in the NBA. Sure, they are loaded with talent at the top with one of the league's premier starting lineups, but their bench unit is what won them the game in San Antonio.
Going against a Nuggets team, whose bench unit is actually seen as their biggest weakness, this could get ugly. David Adelman has said that he does not want to play a starter with the second unit, meaning we could see a full platoon rotation. However, that could cause trouble.
Jared McCain alone torched the Spurs' second unit, finishing the night with 20 points on 6-8 shooting from deep. While the Nuggets can hope the Sixth Man of the Year candidate cools down on Thursday, questionable depth, defensive woes, and a lack of three-point threats for the Nuggets could make this a lopsided matchup once the second units check in.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
The back-to-back NBA MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, is not slowing down heading into the new season. Gilgeous-Alexander has always given the Nuggets trouble, and it will likely be no different on Thursday.
In Oklahoma City's season opener, Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 32 points, six rebounds, four assists, three steals, and three blocks. The superstar guard stuffed the stat sheet to lead the Thunder to their first win of the season, and even after watching the tape of Tuesday's game, the Nuggets will have trouble slowing him down when they face him.
This will be a situation where the Nuggets desperately need Christian Braun to step up. He already looked better in preseason than he did last year, and if they want a chance of slowing down Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder offense, they need their better defenders to show up. Maybe we'll get extra Alpha Diallo minutes as Adelman looks for answers against the two-time MVP.
What the Nuggets should expect
There are obvious downsides to the Nuggets waiting until Thursday to play their season opener, especially against a team that has already shaken off the offseason rust, but hopefully they can use their biggest advantage available: game tape.
The Nuggets now have a full look at this new Thunder team, while Oklahoma City only has preseason film to watch of Denver's new-look squad. Even then, the Nuggets barely had their full team together in the preseason, so given the situation, Denver could have a leg up on the Thunder.
Of course, none of that matters unless the Nuggets show up and perform. Walking out of Oklahoma City with a statement road win would be what this Denver team needs to rebuild confidence after last season's first-round playoff exit, and with fresh legs and knowing exactly what they're walking into, they certainly have a chance to pull it off.
Granted, the Thunder will always be a tough draw for the Nuggets, but they obviously have the talent to compete with any team in the league.
Add us as a preferred source on Google