A few short weeks ago, everything was going swimmingly.
The defending champions had strung together seven consecutive wins to start the season, and silenced any doubters with away wins over the Auckland Tuatara and the Franklin Bulls.
A breezy win over the Wellington Saints in Dunedin on May 13 had confirmed the Nuggets as the leading contenders.
But an injury to classy American point guard JaQuori McLaughlin has threatened to derail the campaign.
He took a heavy knock to the knee on his way to a career-high 39 points against the Auckland Tuatara in the return clash.
That game slipped away from the Nuggets’ grasp. They were not able to bring the same energy and intensity to the fixture.
But it would have been nothing more than a scratch had it not been for McLaughlin’s injury.
He missed the 95-94 loss to the Hawke’s Bay Hawks. And it was very obvious how much they missed McLaughlin’s distribution skills and ability to drive to the rim during the crushing 116-79 loss to the Southland Sharks on Monday night.
They will have to get by for at least the next two games as well. The 25-year-old has been ruled out for the game against the Manawatū Jets in Palmerston North tomorrow night and the game the following evening against the Wellington Saints.
McLaughlin is in excellent form and offers a lot of value, but it is a critical time of the season to miss games and it presents the Nuggets with an awful dilemma.
Do they wait for his injury to heal and, while they are waiting, run the risk of missing the window to replace him?
Remember, in order to be eligible to participate in the playoffs, a player must have played in a minimum of five regulation games. And the Nuggets are nearing the end of the runway.
Coach Brent Matehaere said the Nuggets were waiting on the results of an MRI scan before considering the options.
"Obviously we’re sitting and waiting to find out that information and then you make your best decisions with the player first and foremost in mind," he said.
"We are talking about people, we’re not talking about commodities. And, if we are going to be true to who we are, it is about people first and we need to look after JaQuori as a person first rather than as a basketball player."
The best result for the Nuggets would be for McLaughlin to make a rapid recovery and return to court for the home game against the Canterbury Rams on June 15.
If he is still not right, the Nuggets will fall under enormous pressure.
The return game against the Rams in Christchurch on June 22 is the last chance for the Nuggets to introduce a new player who would be eligible for the playoffs.
Matehaere said they were "decisions made above my pay grade" when asked whether the franchise would consider replacing McLaughlin if he is ruled out.
"I have some influence. But in reality I’m not the one who sits there and makes those decisions. But I’m sure there will be some conversations if we find JaQuori can’t play out any remainder of the season."
In the meantime, the Nuggets (7-3) have to find a way to win without a full quota of imports if they are going to push on and make the playoffs.
They have some wins banked, but confidence has been dented.
"The conversations have been about getting back to where we were and making sure that we fight on each possession.
"The Sharks were able to pick us apart and make things look a bit easy at times for themselves. But they shot the ball extremely well which made it really challenging."
National Basketball League
Palmerston North, tomorrow, 7pm
Otago Nuggets (possible): Sam Timmins, Robbie Coman, Todd Withers, Michael Harris, Darcy Knox, Matt Bardsley, Josh Aitcheson, Jack Andrew, Joe Ahie.
Manawatū Jets (possible): Joshua Leger, Daniel Pippen II, Mustapha Heron, Liam Judd, Javion Blake, Marcel Jones, Campbell Scott, Jackson Stent, Tukaha Cooper, Pafe Momoisea.
