Denver, CO
Bruce Brown Has One Simple Goal for Nuggets Preseason
The Denver Nuggets still have a handful of preseason contests to go before the real regular season action gets underway later this month, facing two games on the road while staying at home for one to provide a few more early looks at what this refreshed roster looks like heading into the new year and the official 82-game slate.
Among those new names on the roster (or returning) getting adjusted through the preseason motions is veteran guard Bruce Brown, who comes to the Nuggets as a free agency signing this summer after being away for the past two seasons, and looking to be a part of another championship core as he was in 2023.
And in Brown’s mind, there’s one notable goal he wants to hit while being a part of the preseason action as he gets acclimated with Denver once again, and that’s building chemistry with the second unit.
“Just build chemistry,” Brown said of his biggest preseason goal. “The second unit, all new, playing with each other. We don’t have much time together, so we’re just trying to build our chemistry with the second unit.”
The bench unit in Denver looks vastly different than how it was left at the end of last season. Brown comes in along with other veterans like guard Tim Hardaway Jr. and center Jonas Valanciunas, adding a whole new layer of versatility and talent to the second unit.
But with those additions, also comes a learning period to build the necessary chemistry to fill out their ceiling. Preseason, of course, helps give Brown and everyone else on the floor a sense of what to expect for an in-game setting with a new and improved roster, and in turn, helps maximize what this bench unit has to offer.
As far learning the scheme or the Nuggets’ offense, Brown’s already comfortable playing within the Denver system that makes the work a bit easier during preseason. Instead, his focus lies upon being able to mesh with the teammates and talent that surrounds him.
“[It’s] not really much of an adjustment for me,” Brown said. “The plays are kind of the same, just different terminology… Just learning how to play off other great players.”
With a little less than two weeks until the Nuggets’ regular season opener arrives, they’ll have tons of time between now and then to keep building that aspired chemistry in the first and second unit through camp and preseason to get the new year started on a high note.
The Denver Broncos have undergone a uniform overhaul, beginning in 2024. The Broncos rolled out the Mile High Collection ahead of the 2024 season, which included three different uniform combinations, plus the ’77 Throwbacks.
In 2024, Broncos fans were also treated to a Midnight Navy jersey/pants combination with the white ‘D’ helmet on Monday Night Football against the Cleveland Browns. On top of that, the Broncos rocked their White Out look, which included the Summit White jersey/pants combination and their standard Bronco logo on a white helmet, against the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day last season.
The Broncos are keeping things fresh, and it’s going to be fun to see the different jersey combinations the team rolls out each week this coming season. Fans are obviously partial to the designs, but where do the Broncos’ uniform combinations rank among their NFL peers?
Sports Illustrated‘s Mike Kadlick ranked all 32 NFL teams’ uniform combinations, with the Broncos checking in at No. 10.
“Known as the ‘Mile High’ collection, the Broncos’ new uniforms debuted ahead of the 2024 season, and they remain awesome. Jam-packed with nods to Denver and the surrounding area, their jerseys feature a sleeve cap with a mountain peak and subtle triangles along the sides to represent Colorado’s summit markers. Their helmets, meanwhile, don a bumper that reads “5280”—a reference to Denver’s elevation above sea level. Rounded out with an all-blue alternate kit and a classic throwback look that incorporates the team’s D helmet logo, the Broncos nailed their recent redesign,” Kadlick wrote.
Attention to Detail
It’s not No. 1, but at least the Broncos are in the top 10. As Kadlick noted, Denver’s attention to detail in the new uniform designs is second to none.
Kadlick had the Los Angeles Chargers ranked No. 1, which, I’ve got to admit, kind of surprised me. I’ve never been that impressed by the Chargers’ designs, but to each their own, I suppose.
The Chiefs ranked No. 11, with the Las Vegas Raiders at No. 14, for whatever it’s worth. Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, but Kadlick had a few questionable uniform designs ranked ahead of the Broncos, I must say.
Besides the Chargers at the top, Kadlick had the Cincinnati Bengals (No. 5), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (No. 6), Washington Commanders (No. 8), and Miami Dolphins (No. 9) ranked above the Broncos. I’ll hear you out on the classic look of the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers (with slight modern twists), as well as the cool options the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans are rolling out nowadays, but the Chargers are meh, the Bengals and Bucs are downright ugly, and the Commanders are just plain.
No big deal, though. Posts like this make for timely offseason fodder as we await the return of football. The Broncos just finished up their offseason training program, and we’re now firmly in the NFL summer.
The cleats will hit the grass again at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit on July 28, when the veterans report for training camp. From there, the whirlwind of the 2026 season will begin in earnest.
Let’s hope the product on the field looks as good as the Broncos’ Mile High Collection uniforms. The Broncos have produced two double-digit-win seasons since the Walton-Penner ownership group rolled out the new uniform designs, so there is a precedent in place.
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The Nuggets are declining Jalen Pickett’s fourth-year team option for the 2026-27 season, releasing him from his contract, league sources told The Denver Post.
Former Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth drafted Pickett with the 32nd overall pick in 2023. The 6-foot-2 reserve combo guard has struggled to break into Denver’s everyday rotation throughout his first three years in the league.
His $2.41 million salary next season would’ve offered the Nuggets a sliver of cap relief, but they chose instead to move on from the former Penn State star. Monday was the deadline to make a decision on his option.
Pickett, 26, averaged 5.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 16.1 minutes per game last season. He appeared in 50 games, highlighted by a career-high 29-point, seven-assist performance in January to lead the Nuggets in an upset over Philadelphia without their entire starting lineup.
Pickett is shooting 38.7% from the 3-point line on two attempts per game in his first three years. He also boasts a sturdy 3.63 career assist-to-turnover ratio.
But he’s remained a deep bench option under two different head coaches in Denver, from Michael Malone to David Adelman. Booth was fired in April 2025. Then, new co-general managers Jon Wallace and Ben Tenzer signed veteran point guard Tyus Jones off the buyout market late last season when the Nuggets wanted ball-handling depth. Jones received playoff minutes over Pickett during their first-round series against the Timberwolves.
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