Spoiler alert: Reason #4 is because The Knicks still exist…

It doesn’t seem like that long ago the Nuggets were on the verge of garnering a vestige of respect from the rest of the NBA. A series of 50-win seasons and a couple of playoff berths put Denver's little basketball team on the up-and-up, but then the nightmare seasons under Brian “Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper” Shaw spontaneously combusted the whole thing, leaving the Nuggets in rebuilding mode.

You can be blind and still see that the Nuggets don’t have a lot going for them … but they do have potential, especially for the upcoming 2015-2016 season. Here are four reason why this year, the Nugget won’t be the worst team in the NBA.

1. Emmanuel Mudiay could be the real deal

The Nuggets’ rookie point guard, Emmanuel Mudiay, was the second-ranked basketball prospect coming out of high school, according to Rivals. Many questions still surround the untested young point guard, who skipped college for a million dollar contract to play in China.

Now the Nugs have got him, and he’s shown flashes of brilliance, averaging 17.7 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists per game in Guangdong. Given, that impressive performance was in China, so yes, he was playing against five Chinese guys.That’s saying something, because while Americans aren’t dominating the Chinese at math and science scores, we definitely are at basketball. That means Mudiay’s numbers might have gotten lost in translation, but hey, we’ll still take it. Hell, we’ll take anything. Can your 12-year-old cousin get the ball in the hoop when you lift him up to the net? Send us his LinkedIn.

2. Danilo Gallinari might not break into a million pieces

Danilo Gallinari has been plagued with injuries since landing in Denver. The forward missed 33 of his first 90 games in 2011, the entire 2013 season with a torn ACL and missed long stretches due to injuries throughout the 2014-15 season.

Gallinari did, however, end the 2015 season with a pair of career-high games (40 and 47 points respectively) including a pair of back-to-back games in which he nailed 3 point showings seven times in a row. Gallinari has been on fire in international play this summer, averaging 18.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.

Will he remain healthy or will continue to build his reputation as a person made almost exclusively of hair gel and bird bones?

Well, the man’s nickname is ‘Gallo’ which is Italian for ‘Rooster’ so you know we love him even if he's currently in a body cast sipping blended chicken soup out of a silly straw.

3. Jusuf Nurkic is angry, enormous and incredible

The big, nearly 300-pound, 7-foot-tall Bosnian sensation was a juggernaut at times as an unpolished rookie last season. Nurkic averaged 8.3 points 8.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks, which is pretty impressive for a 20-year-old rookie who’s earned himself very limited playing time due to his aggressive playing style.

It’s not hard to imagine him as a consistent 10 point/10 rebound kind of guy heading into 2016. Another dependable double-double threat to play alongside Kenneth Faried. Plus, if you ever wanted to actually climb a human, he's your dude.

4. The Knicks still exist

They sure do and they’ll probably end up in last place, which means the Nuggets have a chance at their own brand of glory.

How will Mudiay adapt to a league full of people who aren’t Asian? Will Wilson Chandler simply use his creepy baby tattoo neckpiece to weird out opponents into letting him make lay-ups? Will the Nugs win 23 games? There’s honestly no telling.

One thing is for sure, we’re not going to make the playoffs. At least there’s absolutely nothing to lose and they still serve beer at the arena. It’s going to be a long season and, as the saying goes, there’s always next year. At least the Timberwolves and Knicks are around to make us look somewhat respectable.