At pick No. 29 in the NBA Draft, the Nuggets take a Gonzaga guard
Jun 22, 2023, 9:08 PM | Updated: 9:19 pm
The Denver Nuggets didn’t need to add a star in the 2023 NBA Draft.
But more depth is never a bad thing.
The Nuggets entered Thursday night with three selections, including No. 29 in the first-round thanks to a trade with the Indiana Pacers earlier this week.
With that pick, Denver GM Calvin Booth selected Julian Strawther, a 6-foot-7 guard out of Gonzaga. Strawther averaged 15.2 points and 6.2 rebounds per game for the Bulldogs this season. He played two tournament games at Ball Arena, both of which Gonzaga won.
Strawther shot 40.8 percent from three-point range a year ago, and had a 40-point game against Portland. He scored 28 in the Zags’ first-round win over Grand Canyon University in Denver.
Booth struck gold in Round 1 a year ago, taking Christian Braun out of Kansas at No. 21 overall. Braun had a solid rookie year, highlighted by a huge Game 3 of the NBA Finals to help the Nuggets steal that one in Miami. Denver, of course, went on to win its first championship.
Now, Strawther will try to find his role. Minutes could be tough to come by, especially because of head coach Michael Malone’s tendency to not play rookies much, but Braun broke that mold this year.
Denver also faces uncertainty around the future of guard Bruce Brown, as he declined his player option on Wednesday and is officially a free agent. Brown said at the parade he wants to be back, but we’ll see if big money from another team can steal his services.
In the meantime, welcome to Denver, Julian Strawther. The expectation here now is titles.
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