- Will Barton declined his player option, but he and the Nuggets are optimistic about reaching a new deal, per Mike Singer of The Denver Post. JaMychal Green also opted out of his contract for next season, though Singer believes that it makes more sense for the team to prioritize a new deal with Green than with frontcourt free agents Paul Millsap and JaVale McGee.
Nuggets forward JaMychal Green is headed to unrestricted free agency this summer. He’s declining the $7.56MM option on the final year of his contract, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets.
The 31-year-old Green appeared in 58 regular-season games this past season, including five starts, and averaged 8.1 PPG and 4.8 RPG in 19.3 MPG. He also averaged 5.4 PPG and 5.2 RPG in 19 MPG during the postseason. He missed the first five games of the season with a calf strain.
Green has also played for the Clippers, Grizzlies and Spurs.
The Nuggets became a hard-capped team after signing Green with the mid-level exception last offseason. The mid-season acquisition of Aaron Gordon ate into his playing time.
Green might be taking a bit of a gamble, considering he’s been mainly a second-unit contributor much of his career. However, he’s a solid rotation player and could now find a new home where he might receive a bigger opportunity.
- The Nuggets put forth a “full, all-hands-on-deck organizational effort” to ensure longtime assistant Wes Unseld Jr. got a head coaching job, Denver’s president of basketball operations Tim Connelly told Fred Katz of The Athletic. Connelly said he informed the Wizards that Unseld “is one of the brightest minds I’ve ever been around.”
- South Carolina wing A.J. Lawson worked out today for the Nuggets, according to Adam Zagoria of Forbes (Twitter link).
The NBA has finalized the list of 20 prospects who will be invited to the Green Room on draft night, writes ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. While 15 of the names had already been reported, the final five players were identified over the last two days: Chris Duarte, Cameron Thomas, Isaiah Jackson, Alperen Sengun and Ziaire Williams will round out the group.
While an invitation to the Green Room is no guarantee of being drafted in the top 20, the decision is considered to be an indication of teams’ thinking, as the invitations are determined through a series of conversations with general managers and a voting process where teams vote on the 25 prospects most likely to have their name called first, Givony writes.
We have more news from around the draft world:
- Howard University’s Makur Maker has withdrawn from the draft, tweets draft analyst Chad Ford. The 6’11 forward flashed versatility at the NBA Combine, but his draft stock was still hazy. Because he missed the NCAA’s withdrawal deadline, Maker will likely pursue professional options, whether in the G League, Australia’s NBL, or elsewhere.
- Terry Taylor worked out with the Bucks yesterday and the Nuggets today, tweets Adam Zagoria of Forbes. Taylor has workouts lined up with the Nets, Cavaliers and Mavericks this week, and already worked out for the Knicks, Warriors, Kings, Pacers, Grizzlies, Bulls, Spurs and Pelicans. The 6’5″ wing led the country in double-doubles, Zagoria notes.
- Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo released his latest mock draft today, sharing some pieces of intel gathered from sources. Within his mock, Woo confirms that the prevailing notion is that the Rockets prefer Jalen Green to Evan Mobley, that the Thunder are being increasingly linked to James Bouknight, that the Magic covet Scottie Barnes, and that Jonathan Kuminga‘s range seems to be settling around six-to-eight, rather than being a top-five pick.
- 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.