National Basketball Association

Denver Nuggets: Is Kenneth Faried Still Relevant?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

foxsports

Despite bursting onto the scene as a rookie, Kenneth Faried’s career with the Denver Nuggets has stalled. Do they still need him?

For the Denver Nuggets, this summer has been a relatively quiet one. They did not make any big moves during free agency, electing to stick with the intriguing talent that they already have.

They may not get talked about as much as the Utah Jazz or Minnesota Timberwolves as the next rebuilding team to step up. But they certainly have the talent to make that happen.

From point guard Emmanuel Mudiay and the potentially explosive Nikola Jokic to the already established Danilo Gallinari (when healthy), this is a team that can win some games.

Another player on their roster who is being overlooked however is forward Kenneth Faried. Now entering his sixth season as a pro, Faried has provided a lot of positives for this team in his time there.

However it’s always felt like he’s never quite taken that next step to move into the All-Star discussion and really help this team on a nightly basis. Question marks and an apparent ceiling still remain in place.

Mar 14, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) dunks the ball past Miami Heat forward Luol Deng (9) during the first half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Interestingly, that four-year, $50 million deal he signed back in 2014 looks like a bargain now, and it is. But it also represents a contract that would be easily moved if the Nuggets wanted to trade him.

But should the team be looking to do so? Or does the fact that Faried now has better teammates around him mean that his production levels will increase this year too?

It may be easy to forget, but Faried was a key piece in the Nuggets team that won an NBA franchise-best 57 games in the 2012-13 season. That year, Faried played in 80 games (a career high), playing 28 minutes a night (career high) and grabbing 9.2 rebounds a game (career high).

In what was only his second year as a pro, Faried was a monster on the glass, and he set the tone defensively with his intensity as well.

3 on 2…@KennethFaried35 with the finish! pic.twitter.com/wTlJOilaf5

— Coach Holling (@CoachHolling) September 30, 2016

More from Hoops Habit

For a supposedly important player who is still only 26 years old and in theory just about to enter his prime, that’s not right.

He’s also averaging 12.3 points per game for his career so far, but his offensive arsenal has never expanded.

You can argue that that’s acceptable, that Faried does his best work defensively anyway, and that is correct.

But his rebounding numbers, although consistent, have fallen every year since that wonderful season as well (8.7 rebounds per game for his career).

It looks like his productivity has stalled, but in fact it may be more concerning that that. As a rookie, Faried posted a defensive plus/minus rating of 1.0.

Interestingly, his offensive plus/minus that year was a brilliant 2.3, a number he’s never come close to reaching again. But it does show that he’s capable of contributing in a big way on that end of the floor too.

Returning to the defensive plus/minus however, and last season was the first time he posted a negative number in that category (-0.1).

Ok, so it’s not a massive figure and it essentially shows that he was just below breaking even in that category. But for somebody who has made a living with his defensive ability, that’s a red flag.

With his numbers dropping and the team playing him less and less then, what’s the point in keeping him around? He still has value around the league, and a change of scenery could help him.

That may be true, but there are some numbers that actually support the case that Faried should see more minutes this year.

Defensively you know what you’re getting, even if the numbers aren’t as high as they once were. But offensively, is Faried actually a lot better and more important to this team than we realize?

Last year Faried took his field goal attempts in three seasons (9.3) but he posted a career high in effective field goal percentage (55.8 percent).

His offensive win shares was a noticeably high 4.0, a career high in this category. His Player Efficiency Rating of 21 was also the highest since his rookie year.

It may have been harder to notice, but Faried was actually being more efficient on the offensive end. Unfortunately for him, he’s known for his defending so when those numbers stuttered, they were the focus of some criticism.

So despite seeing less time on the court than ever before, Kenneth Faried became a more efficient offensive player. His defensive numbers suffered a little as a result, but he became a more threatening two way player.

Those type of players are not easily found in the NBA today, and the Denver Nuggets would be wise to give him a bigger role on the team this coming season.

They’ll be glad they turned The Manimal loose once again.

This article originally appeared on