On Thursday’s episode of the Zach Lowe Show, Zach and his guest, Tim Legler, picked their biggest [surprises and disappointments so far this NBA season](https://t.co/np0HVFke5H). Legs picked the Celtics, and what they’ve been able to do without Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis, Luke Kornet, Al Horford, and Jrue Holiday, then Zach went shorter-term, and picked the Nuggets for their play without Nikola Jokic.
Lowe called it “astonishing” that the Nuggets have been able to go 6-3 without Jokic since his knee injury in late December. Of course, they’ve also been without Cam Johnson and Jonas Valanciunas, Christian Braun has only played in three of those games, and even Jamal Murray has missed three.
Yet, the Nuggets have just kept it going regardless of who has been on the floor. Peyton Watson has gotten a ton of attention, and rightfully so, as he is averaging over 24 points per game during this stretch, but guys have stepped up all over the roster to make this possible.
There have been great stretches from Tim Hardaway Jr., Jalen Pickett, Spencer Jones, Aaron Gordon as he nurses his way back to full health, Zeke Nnaji, Bruce Brown, and even DaRon Holmes and Hunter Tyson have contributed.
Lowe planting flag on Nuggets and Thunder being equals
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The conversation on the podcast between Zach and Tim continued, praising the Nuggets for how they’ve played. Zach gave Murray his flowers, claiming he “has to be in the All-Star Game, no questions asked. He’s been unbelievable”, which was a point echoing something Legler had said on an ESPN broadcast.
Lowe went on to say, for the second straight podcast, that Denver is not only a title contender, but they are a “Juggernaut hiding in plain sight”, and reiterated that when fully healthy, he believes that Denver “is toe-to-toe with the Thunder as the best team in the NBA”.
Legs said he agreed with everything Zach said about the Nuggets, and they both talked about how a one-horse race has turned into a potentially fascinating battle for the title.
Legler picked the Pacers and Cavaliers as his two biggest disappointments, thinking the Cavs would be leading the East, and that the Pacers would at least be competing without Tyrese Haliburton. Zach named the Clippers as his biggest disappointment for their pathetic 6-21 start, even though they’ve rebounded and ripped off 12 of their last 14.