The Denver Nuggets addressed a position of need in the first round of Wednesday's NBA Draft, trading up to select Dayton center DaRon Holmes II.
Denver moved up six spots in a deal with the Phoenix Suns to grab Holmes, a 6-foot-10 junior, with the No. 22 pick. The Nuggets dealt the Nos. 28 and 56 picks, and a pair of future second-round picks, to Phoenix for Holmes.
Denver needed a young, athletic big man in the rotation behind superstar center Nikola Jokic. Holmes – a bona fide rim protector and improved offensive threat – fits the bill.
He improved as a scorer in each of his three seasons with the Flyers, putting up 20 points per game as a junior after averaging 18 as a sophomore and 13 as a freshman. Holmes added 8.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.1 blocks per contest in 2023-24.
#Nuggets needed a big young athletic center behind Nikola Jokic. So they traded up with the Suns and will get DaRon Holmes II from Dayton. 6'10" center averaged 20 points and 8.5 rebounds for Dayton last season. @DenverChannel
— Lionel Bienvenu (@lionelbienvenu) June 27, 2024
Holmes was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Co-Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in 2023-24. He also made the conference's All-Defensive team each of his three seasons.
He and Purdue big man Zach Edey – one of college basketball's biggest stars over the past two seasons and the No. 9 pick in Wednesday's draft – were the only players in Division I to record at least 65+ blocks, 65+ dunks, and 65+ assists, according to the Nuggets PR team.
Holmes is a threat at the rim on both ends of the floor, and even developed his shot from 3-point land in his final season, hitting 32 of 83 (38.6%) from deep after attempting just 26 three-pointers across his first two campaigns.
Check out some of his highlights here:
Let’s learn more about DaRon Holmes?
— Late Night Lake Show (@LateNightLakers) June 26, 2024
6’10” | 236 lbs | 21 years old | C
20.4 PTS, 8.5 REB, 2.6 AST, 0.9 STL, 2.1 BLK
54.4 FG% 38.6 3PT% 71.3 FT%
A two-way monster and has improved as a playmaker and shooter year after year. pic.twitter.com/btrEBM66aZ
Altitude Sports' Vic Lombardi reported on the social media site X that the Nuggets were "wary" of the possibility that the Minnesota Timberwolves – who ousted the Nuggets from this year's playoffs in an unlikely second-round comeback – could select Holmes with the No. 27 pick, and were thus motivated to find a trade partner to move up.
Dayton earned a No. 7 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Round of 32, where it lost to Arizona.
