LeBron James calls Nuggets one of his most anticipated teams to watch

The Denver Nuggets had an exciting offseason. After losing to the eventual champion Oklahoma City Thunder in seven games in the Conference Semifinals last season, the organization retooled its front office, its coaching staff and its roster to give this team a legitimate shot at winning a championship again.

As a result, many people around the NBA scene are high on the 2023 champs and Nikola Jokic, as they’re looking like the second-best team in the West, right behind the Thunder. The sports books are liking the Nuggets’ chances to make it all the way, and many of the top talking heads have faith in Denver to make it to at least the Conference Finals and give the champs a run for their money.

There’s someone else who’s Rocky Mountain High on the Nuggets this year, and it’s a guy who has played against this team a lot, especially in recent years, and knows just exactly what Jokic brings to the table.

That man is none other than LeBron James, who has gone toe-to-toe with Denver three times in the playoffs in the Jokic era. James got the best of the Nuggets in 2020, but the Joker and company ousted him in a stress-free manner in both 2023 and 2024. James has been the face of NBA basketball for a long time, and has accomplished more than almost anyone else has throughout his illustrious career. He sat down with fellow NBA legend Steve Nash on their podcast, “Mind the Game,” to talk about the 2025-26 Nuggets.

“I think they had a hell of a summer,” James said. “They’ve added a lot of complementary players and a lot of guys that [are] battle-tested.”

James and Nash then went on to talk about the benefits of the Nuggets being able to run a double-big lineup with Jokic and Jonas Valanciunas, a luxury that they’ve never had during Jokic’s decade and Denver. The possibility of what that lineup could do on the offensive end of the floor (they would likely have to play zone on defense) is a fantasy that no Nuggets fan could’ve dreamed of just last May.

He also compared the Nuggets’ offseason moves to the Rockets’ moves. They are another one of the favorites to slay the Thunder in the West because of their good offseason as well, highlighted by the signing of Kevin Durant.

“Obviously, Houston, they had a great summer just adding KD. But as far as the amount of players that Denver has added, the complementary guys they have, I think they’ve had a great summer,” James said.

The Nuggets will see LeBron’s Lakers three times this season: first at home on Jan. 20, then at home again on March 5, and finally in Los Angeles on March 14. All three games will be nationally televised for the country to see. James is currently out nursing an issue with his sciatic nerve, but is not expected to be out for long enough to impact his status against the Nuggets.

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