Last Season: The 2017-18 campaign was a rollercoaster for Juancho Hernangomez, who had very high hopes going into it after an eye-opening rookie season. But illness derailed those plans early, as the 6-9 forward was sidelined by mononucleosis just two games into the season. He’d been suffering from symptoms well before that and missed the next two-and-a-half weeks. When he returned, he played sparingly.
He did show flashes in stints, especially in the hustle and facilitating categories. In three games as a starter (25.0 min/game), Hernangomez averaged 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists.
2018-19 Outlook: Health will be a big deal for Hernangomez, who coach Michael Malone stressed continues to have the full confidence of the Nuggets coaching staff. Hernangomez has the ability to be a deadly 3-point shooter and could play a pivotal role off the bench in long-range shooting and hustle. He has also added muscle with a ton of weight room work this summer. Expect this to be a bounce-back year for the Spaniard.
Bold Prediction: Hernangomez will make over 100 3-pointers on an average of at least 3.0 attempts per game.
Christopher Dempsey: christopher.dempsey@altitude.tv and @chrisadempsey on Twitter.