Takeaways from Nuggets’ preseason opener at Phoenix Suns: Julian Strawther makes early pitch for playing time

The Nuggets defeated the Suns 115-107 in their 2023-24 preseason opener Tuesday night in Phoenix. Here are three takeaways from the defending champs’ return to NBA action.

First glance at potential second unit?

Four preseason games remain, and as Michael Malone has pointed out, he might feel inclined to keep tinkering with his bench unit after the real games start like last year. But the preseason opener did offer some grain-of-salt sense of a developing pecking order as interim coach David Adelman went 10 deep in a first half that seemed designed to vaguely simulate standard lineup substitutions. Denver’s starters — with the exception of Michael Porter Jr. (left ankle) — did actually start, as opposed to Phoenix not playing Devin Booker, Kevin Durant or Bradley Beal at all.

The first two off the Nuggets’ bench were point guard Reggie Jackson and rookie forward Hunter Tyson. Soon after, Julian Strawther, Peyton Watson and Zeke Nnaji rounded out the second unit. Justin Holiday, whom Malone labeled at training camp as this year’s Jeff Green, started at the three with Porter out. Denver’s second-half starting five, once the four actual starters were done for the night, consisted of Jackson, Strawther, Holiday, Watson and DeAndre Jordan.

Jalen Pickett was the team’s only 2023 draft pick who didn’t play in the first half. He checked in for the first time late in the third quarter and played most of the fourth.

The obvious standout debut

New sixth man Christian Braun is the only certainty on that second unit, occupying the two-guard position and making it more difficult for a newcomer like Strawther to earn a role at the NBA level. But if he keeps playing as well as he did Tuesday with Braun out (left calf contusion), the rookie might make the Nuggets think twice about who plays the backup three.

Strawther got off to a slow shooting start, but his floor spacing off-ball — the trait that stood out most to Malone throughout training camp — was already evident.

By the second half, he had a feel for his shot. If the highest praise a quarterback can receive is that he “can make all the throws,” Strawther was the quarterback of the Nuggets’ bench. He made all the shots: catch-and-shoot 3s, 3s off the dribble, baseline floaters while operating the pick-and-roll, runners in the lane, midrange pull-ups. He scored 15 points in the third quarter on perfect shooting for 20 on the night.