It has been hard to gauge the Denver Nuggets this season. They started things off with a 1-2 record through three games, with their lone win being a 23-point comeback victory in overtime against the New Orleans Pelicans. They were eerily close to starting the season winless, but they have picked things back up with two consecutive wins to start 3-2.

Now, through their first five games, we have a bit of a clearer picture of this Nuggets team, but with injuries still haunting them, we have yet to see what they're capable of at full strength. Still, we can discuss which individual players have won and lost after five games.

Winner: Christian Braun

After signing a five-year, $125 million contract extension with the Nuggets last year, Christian Braun's production immediately took a hit. Last season, he was very underwhelming, as he struggled to find consistency and lacked his usual explosiveness, but he looks much more like himself this year.

Through five games, Braun is averaging 15.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.4 steals per game, while shooting 52.5% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. Most notably, he is coming off the best offensive game of his career, with 31 points on 7-9 shooting from deep in a win over the Phoenix Suns.

In his defense, Braun was dealing with injuries throughout the 2025-26 season that slowed him down, and now that he is healthy, he is back to being the high-impact guard Denver needs. We'd still like to see Braun find some more consistency, but he is off to a promising start this season.

Loser: Tyus Jones

Heading into the season, we knew the Nuggets' backcourt depth was a serious concern, specifically with their backup ball-handling. By not addressing this issue in the offseason, the Nuggets committed to Tyus Jones as their second-string point guard, but it has not worked out much so far this season.

Through five games, Jones is averaging just 2.4 points and 0.6 assists in 10 minutes per game, shooting 36.4% from the field and 33.3% from beyond the arc. We already know Jones is not the best defender, so if he is not impactful offensively, the Nuggets are running out of reasons to keep him in the rotation.

With the Nuggets having rumored interest in free agent guard Kevin Porter Jr., according to The Stein Line, we could be inching closer to Jones losing his spot as Denver's backup point guard.

Winner: Trevon Brazile

The Nuggets might've gotten the steal of the 2026 NBA Draft. With the 35th pick, they took Trevon Brazile, and he is proving to be a high-impact player. Among all rookies, he is ranked tenth in points per game (8.8), fifth in rebounds (6.6), and fourth in blocks (0.8), while shooting 51.6% from the field and 35.3% from three-point range.

Brazile has greatly exceeded expectations this season, but because of his impressive play, the Nuggets will be put in a tough position. Brazile has gotten the opportunity to play 22.8 minutes per game so far because the Nuggets have been without backup forward Spencer Jones. Once Jones returns, does Brazile get knocked out of the rotation?

The 23-year-old rookie has certainly proven he deserves a full-time spot in the rotation, but we will see how David Adelman and his staff treat his situation once Jones is back on the floor.

Loser: DaRon Holmes

We could be looking at DaRon Holmes' final season with the Nuggets. The Nuggets took a chance on Holmes in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, but his career immediately got off to a rough start. He missed his entire rookie season with an injury and struggled to find consistent opportunities last year. Now, he is completely out of the rotation.

Through five games, Holmes has totaled just five minutes of action, with three DNP-CDs. The deadline for the Nuggets to accept Holmes' 2027-28 team option has now passed, so it would be surprising if he were still in Denver this time next year.

Holmes has fallen drastically short of expectations, but in his defense, he has not gotten many opportunities to prove himself. If there are any more injuries to Denver's frontcourt, we could see Holmes get some extra minutes, but they seem to be content with him staying on the bench.

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