Julian Strawther left Denver’s preseason game at the Clippers in the third quarter Wednesday night with a left knee injury. He underwent an MRI on Thursday morning.
The results have not been released. There is no diagnosis, no timeline and no games-missed estimate, and anyone telling you otherwise is guessing.
What is known is the calendar. Strawther is eligible to sign a rookie-scale extension through October 19.
What Happened
His leg got caught under his body and bent awkwardly as he landed. He stayed down grimacing, was tended to by trainers, and was helped off the court without appearing to put weight on the leg.
Denver ruled him out minutes later with no specific designation. The team posted only that Strawther would not return with a left knee injury. The Nuggets lost 122-110 at Intuit Dome.
Coach David Adelman confirmed Thursday that the MRI had been scheduled, and he had nothing else.
“There’s no direct information as of right now,” Adelman said after the game.
The Timing Is Brutal
Strawther, 24, was drafted 29th overall in 2023 out of Gonzaga and is in his fourth season with Denver after three years in and out of the rotation. This was the preseason he finally broke through.
He averaged 14.0 points across Denver’s first three exhibition games, which works out to 27.5 points per 36 minutes. Against the Clippers he had 11 points on 3-of-7 shooting before the injury. He has been one of Denver’s standout bench players, relied on for shot creation off the dribble in the second unit alongside DeMar DeRozan, and he had been competing for the final spot in Adelman’s rotation.
If he does not sign by October 19, he becomes a restricted free agent next offseason. An unresolved knee injury four days before that deadline changes the negotiation for both sides, and not in the player’s favor.
Adelman Said the Human Thing
“Obviously, it sucks seeing anybody get hurt, someone that’s been working their ass off all summer,” Adelman said.
And then: “All you can do is hope for the best.”
That is a coach who watched a fourth-year player spend an offseason earning a role and lose it on a bad landing in a game that does not count.
What Denver Should Do
The cynical play is to let the deadline pass, let Strawther hit restricted free agency, and match whatever the market offers after seeing how the knee holds up. Teams do this constantly and it is entirely within the rules.
The better play, if the MRI comes back clean, is to pay him now. Strawther’s preseason was the evidence Denver said it needed, and a player who produces 27.5 points per 36 minutes is not going to be cheaper in July after a healthy season.
If the MRI is bad, the decision makes itself and Strawther loses a year of leverage he had just finished earning.
What Comes Next
Denver has four days. The Nuggets will know the diagnosis long before anyone outside the building does, and the extension decision will tell you what the scan said more reliably than any statement.
Watch October 19. Silence will mean something.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.