- The Nuggets brought in Miles McBride, Joshua Primo, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Alan Griffin, Damien Jefferson, and Zaccheus Darko-Kelly for a pre-draft workout on Monday, then hosted David Duke, Jalen Crutcher, Aaron Henry, Colbey Ross, Terry Taylor, and Ethan Thompson for a group workout on Tuesday, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post (Twitter links).
Nuggets swingman Will Barton will opt out of his $14.7MM salary for next season, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Both sides hope a new deal can be reached in free agency, Charania adds.
Today was the deadline for a decision from Barton, who has been in Denver since being acquired in a trade with Portland midway through the 2014/15 season. He is the longest-tenured player on the Nuggets’ roster and will be an offseason priority for president of basketball operations Tim Connelly, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Denver owns Bird rights on Barton and will be able to exceed the cap to re-sign him, notes Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). Even without Barton on the books, the Nuggets project to be over the cap for next season when taking into account the team’s first-round draft pick and a possible $7.6MM salary for JaMychal Green, whose player option decision is due by July 26.
[RELATED: 2021 NBA Offseason Preview: Denver Nuggets]
Barton, 30, suffered a late-season hamstring injury that limited his availability in the playoffs. He appeared in 56 regular season games and averaged 12.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists while shooting a career best 38.1% from three-point range.
Keep up with all the offseason decisions on player options here.
Any discussion about how injuries affected the 2021 NBA postseason probably has to start with the Nets and the Lakers, but the Nuggets shouldn’t be overlooked. After acquiring Aaron Gordon at the trade deadline in March, Denver was firing on all cylinders and looked capable of seriously competing for a spot in the NBA Finals.
Those good vibes didn’t last long though. After the Nuggets won eight of their first nine games with Gordon in the lineup, disaster struck in the 10th game, as Jamal Murray suffered a torn ACL that ended his season and will keep him sidelined for the start of the 2021/22 campaign.
The resilient Nuggets still finished the season strong and won a playoff series against Portland. But without Murray, who averaged 26.5 PPG on a scorching .505/.453/.897 shooting line in 19 playoffs games (39.6 MPG) in 2020, the odds of the team making a deep postseason run took a nosedive.
As tempting as it to imagine “what if?” scenarios about how the second-round series against Phoenix might have played out with a healthy Murray, the Nuggets have to turn their attention to figuring out how to make up for his absence to start next season — and how to put themselves in title contention again in 2022.
The Nuggets’ Offseason Plan:
With Nikola Jokic, Michael Porter Jr., Murray, Gordon, and Monte Morris all under contract for next season, the Nuggets have an enviable core to build upon. Still, there are a number of rotation questions for the team to address this summer.
Will Barton ($14.7MM) and JaMychal Green ($7.6MM) face player option decisions after playing key roles for Denver in 2020/21. Barton, in particular, was an important part of the Nuggets’ success, starting 52 games for the club and serving as a reliable secondary scorer and play-maker. Green’s role was more modest, but he provided reliable depth at the power forward spot and could play the five if needed. The Nuggets, who would probably be just fine with both players opting in, will have to figure out how to replace or re-sign them if they opt out.
Meanwhile, Paul Millsap, JaVale McGee, and Austin Rivers will be unrestricted free agents. The club can withstand losing all three players if necessary, but their contributions shouldn’t be overlooked. Millsap has helped stabilize the frontcourt defense during his time in Denver, while Rivers ended up playing big minutes for the team following injuries to Murray and Barton. I imagine the Nuggets will at least explore bringing all three players back, but if the cost is much higher than the minimum, they may let them walk.
Having already cashed in some of their trade chips for Gordon, the Nuggets seem unlikely to make another major splash in the trade market this offseason, preferring instead to add reinforcements using their draft pick (No. 26 overall) and the mid-level exception.
Whether or not Barton is back, I expect the club will be focused in free agency on finding a guard with some size who can play alongside Morris or Facundo Campazzo in the backcourt. If Green or Millsap returns to join Jokic, Gordon, and Porter, the frontcourt shouldn’t be as high a priority — especially if the team believes Nnaji or Bol is ready to contribute.
Finally, it’s worth noting that Porter will be extension-eligible this offseason and will likely be in line for a max deal or something close to it. While the idea of paying Porter the max with Jokic and Murray already on the books for big money may give the Nuggets pause, extending MPJ is probably the right thing to do — he’s improving at such a rate that he’d still be a positive asset on a more lucrative contract, barring health issues.
Salary Cap Situation
Note: Our salary cap projections are based on a presumed 3% increase, which would result in a $112.4MM cap for 2021/22.
Guaranteed Salary
- Nikola Jokic ($31,579,390)
- Jamal Murray ($29,467,800)
- Aaron Gordon ($16,409,091)
- Monte Morris ($8,449,074)
- Michael Porter Jr. ($5,258,735)
- Facundo Campazzo ($3,200,000)
- Zeke Nnaji ($2,498,760)
- Bol Bol ($2,161,152)
- Total: $99,024,002
Player Options
Will Barton ($14,669,642): Bird rights 1- JaMychal Green ($7,559,748): Non-Bird rights 2
- Total: $22,229,390
Team Options
- None
Non-Guaranteed Salary
- PJ Dozier ($1,910,860) 3
- Vlatko Cancar ($1,782,621) 4
- Total: $3,693,481
Restricted Free Agents
- None
Two-Way Free Agents
Draft Picks
- No. 26 overall pick ($2,096,880)
- Total: $2,096,880
Extension-Eligible Players
- Michael Porter Jr. (rookie scale)
- Will Barton (veteran)
- Vlatko Cancar (veteran)
- Aaron Gordon (veteran)
Unrestricted Free Agents / Other Cap Holds
- Paul Millsap ($15,000,000): Bird rights
- JaVale McGee ($7,980,000): Bird rights
- Austin Rivers ($1,669,178): Non-Bird rights
- Troy Daniels ($1,669,178): Non-Bird rights 6
- Richard Jefferson ($1,669,178): Non-Bird rights 6
- Total: $27,987,534
Offseason Cap Outlook
The Nuggets will almost definitely operate over the cap this offseason, and should be able to stay out of tax territory.
Even if we assume Barton and Green pick up their player options, Dozier’s salary is guaranteed, and the team keeps its first-round pick, that would result in about $125MM for 12 players. That would leave Denver with enough flexibility to use its full mid-level exception without crossing the projected tax line (which is in the $136-137MM range).
Cap Exceptions Available
- Mid-level exception: $9,536,000 7
- Trade exception: $5,325,000
- Trade exception: $2,193,480
- Trade exception: $1,620,564
Footnotes
- Barton’s decision is reportedly due by July 17.
- Green’s decision is reportedly due by July 26.
- Dozier’s salary becomes partially guaranteed ($200K) after August 16.
- Cancar’s salary becomes fully guaranteed after August 3.
- Because he’ll have four years of NBA service, Harrison is ineligible to sign another two-way contract.
- The cap holds for Daniels and Jefferson remain on the Nuggets’ books from prior seasons because they haven’t been renounced. They can’t be used in a sign-and-trade deal.
- This is a projected value.
Salary and cap information from Basketball Insiders, RealGM, and ESPN was used in the creation of this post.
6:05pm: Those additions are now official, USA Basketball tweets.
11:58am: Nuggets center JaVale McGee has been added to the U.S. Olympic team, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Spurs forward Keldon Johnson will fill the other open roster spot, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
They will take the place of Bradley Beal, who isn’t able to play after being placed in health and safety protocols, and Kevin Love, who withdrew from the team earlier today over concerns about the calf injury that forced him to miss most of the season.
McGee, 33, is a 13-year veteran and a three-time NBA champion. He will provide frontcourt depth for an American team that is loaded with guards and wing players, but is short on rebounders and rim protectors.
Johnson, 21, is coming off a breakthrough season after appearing just 17 games as a rookie. He averaged 12.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists for San Antonio this year while starting 67 of the 69 games he played.
A member of the U.S. Select team that has scrimmaged against the Olympians, Johnson has the advantage of being very familiar with the system run by head coach Gregg Popovich. He had become a favorite of USA Basketball decision makers and staff, according to Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Team USA was down to just six active players before today’s additions as Devin Booker, Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton won’t join the team until after the NBA Finals. The Americans will open Olympic play July 25 against France.
The Wizards have offered their head coaching job to Nuggets assistant Wes Unseld Jr., Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN tweets.
Contract negotiations are expected to begin on Saturday and the two parties are likely to come to terms, Wojnarowski adds in a separate tweet, Those talks could begin tonight, according to Mike Singer of the Denver Post (Twitter link).
Unseld will replace Scott Brooks after a lengthy search by Washington’s front office. Washington’s brass is confident an agreement will be reached this weekend, Ava Wallace of the Washington Post tweets.
The Nuggets made a hard push for Unseld to get a shot at his first head coaching job, including numerous calls from president of basketball operations Tim Connelly, Singer adds in a separate tweet.
Reports surfaced on Thursday that the Nuggets assistant was the frontrunner for the job. Bucks assistants Darvin Ham and Charles Lee were the other finalists.
Unseld, who grew up in Maryland and attended Johns Hopkins from 1994-97, began his coaching career in 2005 in D.C. He spent six years as an assistant on the Wizards’ staff from 2005-11 before moving on to coaching roles with the Warriors (2011-12), Magic (2012-15), and Nuggets (2015-present).
His father, Hall-of-Famer Wes Unseld Sr., was a D.C. legend. The elder Unseld, who passed away in 2020, earned five All-Star nods and an MVP award in Baltimore and Washington for the then-Bullets, then coached the team and later held a front office role.
All coaching searches around the league have now been completed. The Pelicans and Wizards were the last two teams seeking a head coach and New Orleans is on the verge of hiring Willie Green to fill their vacancy.
- Alex Labidou of Nuggets.com provides some takeaways on the prospects that the Nuggets brought in for pre-draft workouts on Monday and Tuesday this week. Tuesday’s group included Chudier Bile (Georgetown), Carlik Jones (Louisville), Makur Maker (Howard), MaCio Teague (Baylor), Arnas Velicka (Lithuania), Moses Wright (Georgia Tech). Details on Monday’s group can be found here.
Nuggets associate head coach Wes Unseld Jr. is emerging as the leader to become the Wizards‘ new head coach, according to Shams Charania and Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).
The Athletic’s report comes on the heels of an ESPN report on Wednesday, which suggested that Unseld and Bucks assistant Darvin Ham were the favorites for the Wizards’ job. That story stated that Bucks assistant Charles Lee also remains in the mix, but it appears Unseld has a leg up on the two Milwaukee coaches.
Unseld, who grew up in Maryland and attended Johns Hopkins from 1994-97, began his coaching career in 2005 in D.C. He spent six years as an assistant on the Wizards’ staff from 2005-11 before moving on to coaching roles with the Warriors (2011-12), Magic (2012-15), and Nuggets (2015-present).
It would certainly make for a good story if the Wizards end up choosing Unseld as Scott Brooks‘ replacement, since his father, Hall-of-Famer Wes Unseld Sr., was a D.C. icon. The elder Unseld, who passed away in 2020, earned five All-Star nods and an MVP award in Baltimore and Washington for the then-Bullets, then coached the team and later held a front office role.
The Pelicans and Wizards are the last two teams still conducting head coaching searches this offseason, though New Orleans appears to be on the verge of hiring Willie Green to fill their vacancy.
Sign-and-trade deals are expected to be plentiful this summer and the largest one could involve Hawks forward John Collins, writes Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report. Most contenders have limited cap flexibility, so league insiders are expecting the sign-and-trade option to be used with several of the top free agents.
Collins, a restricted free agent, could be on the move because of the perception that Atlanta doesn’t view him as a max player. Team owner Tony Ressler said last week that the team is hoping to reach a “fair agreement” with Collins, which raises questions about how high the Hawks would be willing to go to match an offer.
League sources tell Fischer there will be a “sizable market” for Collins once free agency begins next month. The Mavericks have been considered a possible destination for some time, and the Timberwolves are another team to watch, according to Fischer.
He shares some more rumors involving potential sign-and-trades:
- Dennis Schröder turned down a four-year, $84MM extension offer from the Lakers and is expected to be on the move this summer. Fischer notes that Schröder wants a bigger salary and a larger role in the offense, but he’s not likely to get either in L.A. The Bulls and Knicks are expected to have interest in the veteran point guard, according to league sources, and a sign-and-trade is the Lakers’ best opportunity to add talent this offseason. L.A. will also continue to see what it can get in return for Kyle Kuzma, Fischer adds.
- The Sixers remain interested in Raptors guard Kyle Lowry and he’s believed to welcome the chance to play for his hometown team. Several contenders will have their eyes on Philadelphia guard Danny Green, who represents another sign-and-trade opportunity.
- Giving P.J. Tucker a new deal with the $12MM average salary he asked for in Houston would push the Bucks over the tax apron. Fischer states that the Nets have been interested in Tucker since they started negotiating the James Harden trade, and the Heat expressed interest as well when they talked to the Rockets about Victor Oladipo. Fischer identifies the Lakers, Warriors, Nuggets and Jazz as other teams to watch, along with the Timberwolves, who are led by former Houston executive Gersson Rosas and have been trying to acquire Tucker since the 2020 draft.
- Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie and Warriors forward Kelly Oubre are two other potential names on the sign-and-trade market, according to Fischer. Sources say Brooklyn kept Dinwiddie past the trade deadline so he could be a potential sign-and-trade asset, while Oubre offers a chance for tax-strapped Golden State to pick up talent. Fischer names the Mavericks, Knicks and Heat as teams that would be interested in both players.
The frontrunners in the Wizards‘ search for a new head coach are Nuggets assistant Wes Unseld Jr. and Bucks assistant Darvin Ham, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Bucks assistant Charles Lee is also a finalist for the job, Woj adds.
All three were reported last week as moving past the first round of interviews, along with former Mavericks assistant Jamahl Mosley, who was hired as head coach of the Magic over the weekend. Washington and New Orleans are the only teams currently without a head coach.
Unseld is the sentimental choice for Wizards fans because his father was a legend in the area as a five-time All-Star with the Bullets. The younger Unseld started his coaching career with the Wizards in 2005 and spent time with the Warriors and Magic before coming to Denver.
Ham has been as assistant under Budenholzer for the past eight years in Milwaukee and Atlanta. His coaching career began with the Lakers in 2011.
The Wizards have been looking for a coach since deciding not to extend Scott Brooks‘ contract in mid-June.
- Will Barton of the Nuggets was cagey about the topic of his impending player option deadline and whether he’ll look to enter free agency, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. “Being appreciated,” Barton said of what he’s looking for in free agency. “Team knowing my value. Of course, an important role. Just the right situation. I want to win.” Barton will have to decide whether he picks up his $14.6MM player option by July 17.
- The Nuggets held a workout for six draft prospects yesterday, tweets Mike Singer: Josh Christopher, Quentin Grimes, Jason Preston, Duane Washington, Jordan Goodman, and Matt Coleman. Of the six, Christopher and Grimes are the highest-ranked, and either one could potentially be in play when the Nuggets are on the board with the 26th pick.