Denver Nuggets Need Emmanuel Mudiay to Be a Leader First, Star Second

DENVER — Emmanuel Mudiay knows how different the NBA will feel during his sophomore season. Rookie excuses no longer fly for the No. 7 pick in the 2015 draft.

“I’m more relaxed [in my second season],” the Denver Nuggets point guard told Bleacher Report. “I just know what to expect more. The game has slowed down tremendously, so it’s going to be fun.” 

By all accounts, Mudiay’s first season didn’t go as smoothly as expected, especially considering he entered with Rookie of the Year aspirations.

He averaged just 12.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game, with shooting percentages (36.4 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from downtown) well below his positional peers. His defense could have politely been called a work in progress against the NBA’s myriad talents at point guard. Turnovers reared their ugly heads far too often (3.2 times per game). 

Mudiay’s shooting still needs improvement, and this preseason didn’t reveal any traction (30 percent from the field). His defense and ability to depress turnover numbers should see progress with the passage of time. 

He is, after all, just 20 years old. He also spent the offseason working on his entire game and building up the requisite strength to endure the 82-date NBA calendar and become a better interior finisher.

There is already plenty of reason for hope. After last year’s All-Star break, Denver’s coaches noticed tangible progress. 

“Emmanuel improved in so many areas last year,” head coach Mike Malone said. “For the fan, they see just the improvement in his three-point percentage and his decision-making—whatever it may be. What I saw was a guy who came in and was very quiet, was kind of to himself. By the end of the year, you saw a completely different Emmanuel Mudiay—someone who had matured, someone who had grown up, that had kind of gotten comfortable in his own skin.”

Mudiay should become a better shooter, a stronger defender and a more capable ball-handler with time and repetition. But leadership requires active work and is supremely important to this team on the rise. 

The young floor general has never thrived as the center of attention. He’s a naturally quiet individual who has to push himself to become more vocal.

He’ll be the first to tell you he typically prefers keeping to himself. But under the veteran tutelage of Mike Miller, he’s begun to realize how important it is for him, as a starting point guard, to change that mentality. 

“He [Miller] said a lot of the stuff I went through, he saw and went through it,” Mudiay said. “He got thrown out there in the fire early, playing his rookie year. He was just trying to teach me a lot of the stuff to do, not to do, and he just built my confidence as the year went on.”

The lessons have stuck.

“Being a point guard, it don’t matter if you’re a veteran or you’re the youngest one on the team,” Mudiay said. “That’s one thing [leadership] that I’m going to be big on myself this year is being more vocal, being more of a leader, challenging guys and also challenging myself.”

So far, so good. Mudiay’s been more engaged during practice sessions and seems more comfortable interacting in media scrums. As Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post told Bleacher Report, this has been a gradual shift happening in accordance with his own feeling of belonging.

“I think he’s a lot more comfortable now. He didn’t want to come in as a rookie loudmouth last season, so he didn’t,” Dempsey explained. “There were plenty of players with experience who were vocal leaders, and so Mudiay basically sat back and watched and tried to learn that aspect of it while also being indoctrinated into life in the NBA.

“As the season went on, and as he got to know his teammates and they got to know him, he felt more comfortable being more vocal,” he continued. “I think he’ll be fine in the role of vocal leader. He’s a little more vocal than most people think, and most importantly, he feels he has the respect of his teammates to be able to take on the role.”

The preponderance of youth on the Denver roster makes gaining respect even easier: Mudiay may only be 20 years old, but he’s surrounded by Will Barton (25), Gary Harris (22), Jusuf …

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