10 Best NBA Draft Picks In Denver Nuggets History

The Denver Nuggets did not have a selection in the 2025 NBA Draft. Let’s take a look at the Nuggets best NBA draft picks in franchise history. It’s not necessarily the 10 best players ranked in order as where they were selected was taken into consideration. Only time with the team is credited. Some honorable mentions include Blair Rasmussen, LaPhonso Ellis, and Raef LaFrentz.

10 Best NBA Draft Picks In Denver Nuggets History

10. Monte Morris (51st overall, 2017)

A few options here, but let’s go with the one who was a late second round selection. Monte Morris was the full-time starting point guard in 2021-22. A well above-average shooter, he shot the three-ball with 39.4% accuracy while with the Nuggets.

9. Bryant Stith (13th overall, 1992)

From his second through his fifth season, Bryant Stith averaged double figures in scoring in each one. He scored more than 30 points four times with Denver including a career-high of 37 which came on December 5, 1996. The 6-foot-5 Stith was the starting shooting guard on the team that upset the Seattle SuperSonics in the opening round of the 1994 playoffs.

8. Christian Braun (21st overall, 2022)

One of the reliable reserves on the Nuggets 2023 championship team as a rookie, the 24-year-old Christian Braun certainly has the opportunity to move up this list. Last season, his first as a full-time starter, he made it known he plans to be a mainstay in that role. Braun’s mightily efficient 2024-25 season consisted of shooting percentage splits of 58.0/39.7/82.7.

May 18, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Christian Braun (0) drives to the basket beside Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) in the first quarter during game seven of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

7. Kenneth Faried (22nd overall, 2011)

Kenneth Faried put together a bunch of efforts in his seven years with the Nuggets that resulted in a double-double. Over his first five seasons, the 6-foot-9 forward had averages of 12.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, and just shy of a block. An efficient scorer, Faried shot 54.3% from the field while with Denver.

6. Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (3rd overall, 1990)

The 1992-93 Most Improved Player, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf led the league in free-throw accuracy twice. The 6-foot-1 point guard played his first six years in the league with Denver. In three seasons, he averaged at least 18 points.

5. Michael Porter Jr. (14th overall, 2018)

Traded to the Brooklyn Nets this offseason, Michael Porter Jr. was a sharpshooter in his Nuggets tenure. In his six seasons, he connected on 40.6% of his three-point tries. The longtime starting small forward was a key part of the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2023.

4. Dikembe Mutombo (4th overall, 1991)

A shot-blocking extraordinaire, Dikembe Mutombo won Defensive Player of the Year in 1994-95. In his five years with the Nuggets, he averaged at least three blocks in each of them and led the league three consecutive seasons from 1993-94 until 1995-96. The 7-foot-2 center also scored at least 11 points a game in each year.

3. Jamal Murray (7th overall, 2016)

Jamal Murray went off in the bubble in the 2020 playoffs before doing so again in the 2023 postseason that helped lead to a title. In each of the last three seasons, he as averaged at least 20 points and six assists. Murray has dropped 50+ twice including his career-high of 55 coming on February 12 this year.

2. Carmelo Anthony (3rd overall, 2003)

An All-Star four times with Denver, Carmelo Anthony was a bucket-getter. He averaged 24.3 points in his Nuggets tenure which included four seasons averaging more than 25. The 6-foot-7 forward made three All-NBA squads with the team (one second, two thirds).

1. Nikola Jokic (41st overall, 2014)

The Nuggets are the last team done in this series, and Nikola Jokic may have been the easiest #1 choice. The last five seasons, he has won three MVPs and finished runner-up the other two times. The 2023 Finals MVP is still just 30 years old and already has 164 career triple-doubles.

Other 10 best NBA draft picks

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