The Denver Nuggets must trade players to reinforce their bench, according to a recent analysis. The team's rookie coach, David Adelman, made a mistake in the playoffs, and the team needs to learn from it. The Nuggets added Tim Hardaway Jr., Bruce Brown, and Jonas Valanciunas in the offseason, but they became ghosts until it was too late. Even with Aaron Gordon hurt, even with Jamal Murray suffocating under the Saran-Wrap tight defense of Jaden McDaniels, Adelman leaned on a seven-man rotation. It brought back memories of last postseason when the Nuggets bench was Russell Westbrook. Singular. Hardaway delivered a pedestrian performance with 10.8 points in 23 minutes per game, but never percolated from beyond the arc. Bruce Brown looked out of sync, assuming a spark plug role at home and a cheerleader spot on the road. Brown netted 19.2 minutes a game, scoring 6.3 points, but with nearly two turnovers. Spencer Jones was the only player to exceed reserve expectations with 6.5 points in 24 minutes. And for all of the bluster about keeping Nikola Jokic fresh, Valanciunas was nonexistent. He was bad when he was in, but was it because Adelman clearly lost confidence in him? Why not use him as a roughneck to foul McDaniels hard early in Game 3 and Game 4? The Bonus Jonas brother only appeared in four games vs. Minnesota, contributing 2.8 points and 1.3 turnovers in 6.3 minutes. And don't get me started about Strawther and Jones. Strawther appeared twice, logging 18 total minutes and making two shots. Jones checked into three games, and clearly should have been used sooner in the series to take pressure off Murray to initiate the offense with Gordon hurt. Jones was solid, averaging 1.7 assists and no turnovers in his 30 minutes. The Thunder, Spurs, and Knicks look so far away, the Nuggets could have telescope night for the first 5,000 fans on opening night and no one would blanch. This is a critical offseason for the Nuggets. They need to trade multiple players, starting with Cam Johnson and Gordon. But they cannot move forward without Adelman learning lessons. Nobody wants to hear about the defensive metrics ranking better than expected against Minnesota. The Nuggets failed the eye test. And they were not athletic enough. But if the playoffs tell us anything, it is that depth matters. Adelman will be given decent bench players. If the Nuggets are going to surprise anyone next postseason, he must do a better job of using them.