Cam Johnson Ruled Out Monday, Giving Denver's Rims a Well-Deserved Break

Cam Johnson has officially been ruled out for Monday night’s matchup against the Golden State Warriors with an ankle injury. If you have been watching him shoot the basketball lately, you might assume the ankle has been bothering him since training camp.

Underdog NBA confirmed the downgrade, sending fantasy managers and prop bettors scrambling to adjust their lineups. But let us be completely honest here: pulling Johnson from the rotation right now might actually be a net positive for a Denver Nuggets offense trying to find its rhythm.

"Underdog NBA reported the official downgrade to out on Monday."

The start to Johnson’s tenure in Denver has been the kind of cold streak that requires a public audit. He has been putting up a bleak eight points and three rebounds a night while shooting 37 percent from the floor and an abysmal 23 percent from deep.

For context, shooting 23 percent from three as a designated floor spacer is like being hired as a lifeguard and refusing to get your hair wet. The Nuggets brought him in to knock down open looks generated by Nikola Jokic, not to build affordable housing in the Rocky Mountains with all those bricks.

Add in the fact that Johnson already has a well-documented history of nagging injuries, including recent shoulder inflammation, and this ankle issue feels entirely on brand. He is an undeniably talented shooter when healthy, but the "when healthy" caveat is doing more heavy lifting than the arena staff converting the court after a hockey game.

Denver will have to rely on their depth to space the floor against Golden State on Monday. As for Johnson, the best-case scenario is that this forced rest gives his ankle time to heal and his jumper a hard factory reset before Wednesday's tilt against the New Orleans Pelicans.