The Nuggets won their last two games in 2012 and have started the season with three wins.
Perhaps they are winning the games we expected the Highlanders to win. But they have certainly undergone a remarkable transformation. It was only two years ago the team was struggling to snap a 33-game losing-streak.
Returning American import Antoine Tisby has played a part in helping turn the team around. The 2.03m centre is in his fourth stint with the Nuggets and has paid his dues.
He made his debut for the franchise in 2008 and won the league's rebounding title that year. The team still finished last.
He returned in 2010 but was injured and was cut after six matches. Last year, he helped lift the Nuggets from the foot of the table with some powerful performances in the paint, averaging 22 points and 12.1 rebounds.
He finished the regular season as the No 1 player on the league's power rankings.
It is an impressive resume but it all means very little to Tisby. The 30-year-old has one goal this season and that is to ''just win matches''.
He made it to the finals of the Canadian National Basketball League with the Summerside Storm, but the London Lightning won 3-1. Tisby has not been part of a championship-winning team and that drives him on more than anything.
''I'd really love that,'' Tisby said.
''I really want to win games this season and pick up where I left off last year.
''We're satisfied with our start. But we want to continue to win and keep that same focus and take that into this weekend.
''I think some of the young guys we've had in prior seasons are starting to come along and have got a lot better. We've also brought in some new talent, some older guys with more experience.
''I think we've got a well-balanced side right now.''
The Nuggets have made their best start to a season in more than a decade but face their toughest match yet. They host the unbeaten Nelson Giants (3-0) at the Edgar Centre tomorrow.
The Giants have a star-studded line-up headed by Mika Vukona of Breakers and Tall Blacks fame. He is a beast on the boards and one of the toughest players in the league.
Former league MVP Josh Pace is a proven scorer, as is veteran shooting guard Phill Jones. Import Erron Maxey is just another player in the Giants squad capable of taking over a game.
Last year, the Nuggets broke a 17-game losing-streak against the Giants with a 97-93 win in overtime at the Edgar Centre, and Tisby dominated with 30 points and 12 rebounds.
The Nuggets will need another standout performance from Tisby to keep their winning streak alive.
If the Nuggets have an advantage, it is in their forward line, where Tisby will be joined by in-form BJ Anthony and small forward Akeem Wright. Vukona will have other ideas, of course.
The good news for the Nuggets is the Giants will be backing up from playing the Southland Sharks in Invercargill tonight.
Nuggets v Giants
Edgar Centre, tomorrow, 3pm
Nuggets: Antoine Tisby, Mark Dickel, BJ Anthony, Akeem Wright, Hayden Allen, Brendon Polyblank, Riki Buckrell, James Ross, Matt Trueman, Luke Aston, Tom Ingham, Hayden Miller, Sheldon McGuire.
Giants: Mika Vukona, Phill Jones, Josh Pace, Erron Maxey, Josh Bloxham, Rory Fannon, Brook Ruscoe, Sam Dempster, Darryl Jones, Angus Riley.
