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Olympic Notes: Murray, Yabusele, Giddey, Barrett, More

August 14th, 2024 at 8:44pm CST by Arthur Hill

There are concerns about Jamal Murray following a lackluster Olympic performance with Team Canada, writes John Hollinger of The Athletic. After dealing with injuries during the latter part of the season, the Nuggets guard was limited to 36.6% true shooting and a 4.7 PER in four Olympic games.

While Hollinger admits that’s a small sample size, he notes that Murray wasn’t any better in Canada’s exhibition contests and didn’t look like the same player he was during Denver’s 2023 title run. Hollinger observes that Murray played without “zip” while having a hard time getting separation from his defender and finishing at the rim. If there’s a physical issue affecting Murray, it could be a significant story heading into training camp and the start of the season, Hollinger adds.

A report in late June stated that the Nuggets and Murray were nearing agreement on a four-year, $208MM extension. Hollinger wonders if the team might be reconsidering that offer in light of Murray’s recent downturn.

Hollinger shares a few more thoughts on the Olympics:

Guerschon Yabusele helped his NBA prospects tremendously with his Olympic performance, but Hollinger is skeptical that he’ll join the league this season. A league source confirms to Hollinger that Yabusele has a $2.5MM buyout in his contract with Real Madrid. Any NBA team that signs him would have to pay that amount, which would count against the cap above the $850K maximum international buyout, along with Yabusele’s salary. Hollinger sees a better chance for Yabusele to return to the NBA next summer when he’ll be a free agent.
Australia used Josh Giddey as its primary ball-handler, a role he’ll assume with the Bulls this season. Hollinger points out that although Giddey could have used better outside shooting around him, he was effective running the offense. He made 11 three-pointers in four games, easing some of the concerns about him in Oklahoma City, while taking on a 30% usage rate.
Hollinger believes Raptors swingman RJ Barrett could be headed for a breakout season. Playing for Canada, Barrett ranked fourth in the Olympics in scoring at 19.8 PPG with 58/44/84 shooting splits. Hollinger adds that Barrett was impressive after being traded to Toronto last season and should have a high-usage role on a rebuilding team.
Khem Birch may have sparked NBA interest after being Canada’s top center in France, per Hollinger. Birch will be 32 by the time training camps open, but Hollinger suggests he could fill a role as a third center.
Mathias Lessort, who helped France reach the gold medal game, could be a “last-resort option” for the Knicks next summer if they still haven’t found a reliable backup center, Hollinger states. The 29-year-old big man is under contract with Panathinaikos in Greece this season.
Isaac Bonga is a free agent after wrapping up a strong Olympics with Germany. Hollinger notes that Bonga is only 24 and could return to the NBA and a three-and-D specialist, even if it doesn’t happen right away.

NBA 2024 Offseason Check-In: Denver Nuggets

August 13th, 2024 at 9:19am CST by Luke Adams

Hoops Rumors is checking in on the 2024 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, recapping the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll take a look at each team’s offseason moves and consider what might still be coming before the regular season begins. Today, we’re focusing on the Denver Nuggets.

Free agent signings

Dario Saric: Two years, $10,594,400. Second-year player option. Signed using taxpayer mid-level exception.
Russell Westbrook: Two years, minimum salary ($6,772,731). Second-year player option. Signed using minimum salary exception.
Vlatko Cancar: One year, minimum salary. Re-signed using minimum salary exception.
DeAndre Jordan: One year, minimum salary. Re-signed using minimum salary exception.
Gabe McGlothan: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.
Jaylin Williams: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.
Jahmir Young: One year, minimum salary. Non-guaranteed (Exhibit 10). Signed using minimum salary exception.

Trades

Acquired the draft rights to DaRon Holmes (No. 22 pick) from the Suns in exchange for the draft rights to Ryan Dunn (No. 28 pick), the No. 56 pick in the 2024 draft, the Nuggets’ 2026 second-round pick, and the Nuggets’ 2031 second-round pick.
Acquired cash from the Hornets in a six-team trade in exchange for Reggie Jackson, the Nuggets’ 2025 second-round pick, the Nuggets’ 2029 second-round pick, and the Nuggets’ 2030 second-round pick.

Draft picks

1-22: DaRon Holmes
- Signed to rookie scale contract (four years, $15,203,657).

Two-way signings

Departed/unsigned free agents

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (Magic)
Collin Gillespie (Suns)
Justin Holiday (unsigned)
Jay Huff (Grizzlies)
Braxton Key (unsigned)

Salary cap situation

Operating over the cap ($140.6MM), over the luxury tax line ($170.8MM), and between the first tax apron ($178.1MM) and second tax apron ($188.9MM).
Carrying approximately $182.6MM in salary.
Hard-capped at $188,931,000.
No form of mid-level or bi-annual exception available.
One traded player exception available (worth $5,250,000).

The offseason so far

For a second consecutive offseason since winning a championship in June 2023, the Nuggets’ rotation took a major hit. After losing top reserves Bruce Brown and Jeff Green in free agency a year ago, Denver saw starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope depart for Orlando this time around.

While it would be easy to cite the new tax apron rules as the reason why they couldn’t retain Caldwell-Pope, the Nuggets had the ability to outbid the Magic for him without derailing the rest of their summer plans if they’d been willing to commit to a significant luxury tax bill. This ownership group has typically been averse to operating too deep into the tax, however, even with three-time MVP Nikola Jokic in his prime and championship contention within reach.

Losing Caldwell-Pope allowed the Nuggets to free up their taxpayer mid-level exception, which they used to sign stretch forward/center Dario Saric. Saric is a solid role player who should play a role off the bench, but he won’t have the same kind of two-way impact that Caldwell-Pope has in recent years.

The Nuggets’ other major offseason addition was Russell Westbrook, who agreed to a two-year, minimum-salary deal (including a second-year player option) after being bought out by Utah. It remains to be seen how Westbrook will fit in Denver, but landing a former MVP and talented play-maker capable of breaking down defenses looks like a win for a team limited to minimum-salary offers.

Still, it’s fair to question the Nuggets’ offseason as a whole. Caldwell-Pope’s exit was a major blow, and the team’s work on the trade market raised eyebrows too — Denver surrendered a whopping six second-round picks in order to shed Reggie Jackson‘s expiring $5.25MM contract and to move up six spots in the first round to draft DaRon Holmes, who suffered a season-ending Achilles tear during his Summer League debut.

Even if Holmes had remained healthy, it’s unclear whether he would’ve been ready to play a major role as a rookie, so giving up all that future draft capital to select him and to move off a relatively small contract may not have been the best use of the Nuggets’ limited resources.

Denver also re-signed veteran center DeAndre Jordan, who played a limited role in 36 appearances last season, and forward Vlatko Cancar, who is coming off a torn ACL and didn’t play well for Slovenia in Olympic qualifiers this summer (he made just 3-of-19 shot attempts and was a -49 in three games). It’s possible the Nuggets will be able to get productive minutes from one or both big men, but expectations should be modest.

Up next

The Nuggets have 15 players on standard guaranteed contracts, three on two-way deals, and three more on Exhibit 10 pacts, so their roster looks set for the regular season.

The primary outstanding question in Denver this offseason is whether a lucrative new long-term contract for Jamal Murray will be finalized in the near future. A report in June indicated that Murray and the Nuggets were expected to come to terms on a four-year, maximum-salary extension that would begin in 2025/26 and would be worth nearly $208MM, based on the NBA’s latest cap projections.

Subsequent reporting indicating that the two sides would wait until after the Olympics to complete a new deal. Well, the Olympics are over, so are the Nuggets still planning to move forward on that maximum-salary extension? Presumably, we’ll get our answer soon.

That four-year extension is a worthwhile investment if Denver is getting the peak version of Murray, but he has battled injuries in recent years and certainly wasn’t at his best in the NBA playoffs (.402 FG%, .315 3PT%) or at the Olympics (.290 FG%, .143 3PT%).

I wouldn’t expect the Nuggets to get cold feet and back out of the deal completely, but with no formal agreement in place yet, maybe there’s some wiggle room for the team to protect itself a little with some injury language or a partially guaranteed final year. A fully guaranteed contract worth an average of $52MM annually for a player who has infamously never made an All-Star team would be risky and would create additional financial constraints for an organization already being affected by its high payroll.

Nuggets Granted Disabled Player Exception

August 9th, 2024 at 10:27am CST by Rory Maher

The Nuggets have been granted a disabled player exception in the wake of DaRon Holmes‘ season-ending torn Achilles tendon, league sources tell Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The exception is worth $1,532,820, half of the rookie’s $3,065,640 salary for the 2024/25 season.

Holmes, who starred in college at Dayton, sustained the injury in his Summer League debut with Denver on July 12. The Nuggets traded three second-round picks to Phoenix to move up six spots in the 2024 draft (from No. 28 to No. 22) to acquire the rights to the 21-year-old big man.

A disabled player exception gives an over-the-cap team some extra spending power – but not an additional 15-man roster spot – when it loses a player to an injury deemed likely to sideline him through at least June 15 of the upcoming season.

We go into more detail on who qualifies for disabled player exceptions and how exactly they work in our glossary entry on the subject. But essentially, if a team has a player suffer a season-ending injury prior to January 15, the exception gives that team the opportunity to add an injury replacement by either signing a player to a one-year contract, trading for a player in the final year of his contract, or placing a waiver claim on a player in the final year of his contract.

Since the DPE for Holmes is so small, there’s a good chance it won’t be used by March 10; the Nuggets have 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts, and the exception doesn’t create a roster spot. Still, there was no downside to applying for the DPE, even if it may not prove very useful.

Christmas Day Games Include Sixers-Celtics, Lakers-Warriors

August 8th, 2024 at 9:20pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The NBA’s leaked slate of Christmas Day games will feature several heavy hitters.

Sources tell Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) that, as usual, five games will be broadcast, highlighted by a marquee matchup between two longtime Eastern Conference foes, the revamped Sixers and the Celtics. Boston, the reigning league champion, will host.

The schedule will be rounded out by several clashes between starry clubs, from veteran-laden squads to young up-and-comers. The Spurs will travel to Madison Square Garden to play the Knicks. A Western Conference Finals rematch is also on the docket, as the Mavericks will host the Timberwolves.

The newly Klay Thompson-less Warriors will host the Lakers, and the Nuggets will travel to Phoenix to face the retooled Suns.

Philadelphia almost completely overhauled its roster around incumbent All-Stars Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. The new additions are headlined by nine-time All-Star combo forward Paul George, who departed the Clippers to sign a four-year, maximum-salary deal with the Sixers. Philadelphia also signed seasoned free agents like forward Caleb Martin, center Andre Drummond, and shooting guard Eric Gordon while bringing back wing Kelly Oubre Jr.

The Celtics retained all of their own key players after going 64-18 in the regular season and 16-3 in the playoffs. A pair of new extensions for All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum and All-Defensive Team guard Derrick White highlighted the team’s transactions, though longer-term uncertainty looms as owner Wyc Grousbeck is looking to sell the franchise.

Led by Defensive Player of the Year and impending Olympic medalist Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs figure to improve on their paltry 21-61 record in 2023/24. The team signed 12-time All-Star point guard Chris Paul to a one-year deal this summer, and traded for veteran combo forward Harrison Barnes. San Antonio also used its No. 4 pick in the lottery on NCAA championship-winning UConn guard Stephon Castle, the 2023/24 Big East Freshman of the Year.

The Knicks, meanwhile traded for former All-Defensive small forward Mikal Bridges this summer to maximize their ability to switch on the wing. The team also re-signed free agent forward OG Anunoby to a long-term contract and free agent center/power forward Precious Achiuwa to a shorter-term deal, inked All-NBA point guard Jalen Brunson to a contract extension, and brought aboard veteran point guard Cameron Payne for extra depth.

Fresh off its first NBA Finals appearance with star guards Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, Dallas added future Hall of Famer Thompson away from the Warriors as part of a sign-and-trade, while also acquiring young guard Quentin Grimes from the Pistons. Dallas also signed free agent wing Naji Marshall to a three-year deal.

After winning their first (two) playoff series in 20 years this spring, the Timberwolves traded for the draft rights to No. 8 pick Rob Dillingham and retained several of their own free agents.

While Golden State did lose out on Thompson, the Warriors quickly pivoted on the perimeter, signing free agent guard De’Anthony Melton and signing-and-trading for free agent wings Kyle Anderson and Buddy Hield. The team is hoping to rebound from a finish as the West’s No. 10 seed and a quick play-in tournament exit.

Denver let free agent starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walk in free agency and brought in reserve guard Russell Westbrook.

The Suns hired title-winning head coach Mike Budenholzer and signed Tyus Jones to a steal of a veteran’s minimum contract. Phoenix also brought back several of its own free agents, including wings Josh Okogie and Royce O’Neale and Damion Lee. The team also inked free agents Mason Plumlee and Monte Morris to minimum-salary contracts.

The most questionable omission from all this Christmas scheduling is clearly the Thunder, who claimed the West’s No. 1 overall seed last season and added ex-Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein via a lucrative three-year, $87MM deal. Oklahoma City also dealt guard Josh Giddey – who fell out of the starting lineup in the playoffs – to Chicago for All-Defensive wing Alex Caruso.

With Shai Gilgeous-Alexander having finished as the MVP runner-up last year and young pieces Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams set to develop, the Thunder look poised to contend for the West’s top seed once again.

Western Notes: Lakers, Markkanen, Grizzlies, Murray

August 7th, 2024 at 1:18pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Lakers, Celtics and Cavaliers are the only three teams who haven’t added any new players through free agency or trade this offseason. Of the three, Los Angeles is the one with the least clarity about its lineup for next season.

Jovan Buha of The Athletic evaluates the Lakers’ depth chart and offers his predictions about who will take the fifth starter spot. With LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell looking like surefire starters, Buha lands on Rui Hachimura over Jarred Vanderbilt for the fifth slot.

Buha points to L.A.’s offensive production and 22-10 record with Hachimura in the lineup to close last season as major reasons why he views him as the frontrunner.

We have more from around the Western Conference:

Lauri Markkanen‘s massive payday with the Jazz is a testament to patience, perseverance, and opportunity, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic. As Jones details, Markkanen didn’t often look like a future star in Chicago or Cleveland, but continued to work on improving his skill set and got the kind of runway in Utah that he hadn’t received at his previous NBA stops. Two years after joining the Jazz, Markkanen has an All-Star berth, a Most Improved Player award, and a new $200MM+ contract under his belt.
With Luke Kennard back in the fold, marginal moves are the ones that will define the rest of the Grizzlies‘ offseason, Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal writes. Deciding whether or not to keep Mamadi Diakite is the most significant move involving players currently on the roster. Parting ways with Diakite would open a spot on the 15-man roster, but there’s no urgency to make a decision right away. Outside of that, a possible rookie scale extension for Santi Aldama is another piece of offseason or preseason business to watch.
The difference in outside discourse regarding Jamal Murray between this offseason and last year is drastic, Bennett Durando of The Denver Post observes. Murray was fresh off playing a key role in the Nuggets winning their first championship a year ago, but underachieved in the 2024 playoffs and in the Olympics, Durando writes. While it shouldn’t be discounted that he was playing a different role – and played through injury – Murray’s struggles this year are poorly timed, given that he’s expected to sign a lucrative long-term extension this summer.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Nuggets Expect More From Braun, Need Free Agents To Deliver

August 5th, 2024 at 10:46pm CST by Dana Gauruder

It has been an eventful offseason for the Nuggets and The Athletic’s Tony Jones breaks down all the meaningful developments. They lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency but the front office is convinced Christian Braun can handle a larger role. The Nuggets are also encouraged by Julian Strawther‘s Summer League performances and think he’ll add much-needed shooting to the rotation.

The Nuggets believe Russell Westbrook will fortify their offense and they’ll also need free agent addition Dario Saric to produce in a backup frontcourt role, especially with first-rounder DaRon Holmes having suffered a torn Achilles during Summer League action. If Saric doesn’t deliver, the Nuggets could be forced to use Aaron Gordon as the de facto backup center, Jones writes.

G League Team Acquires Bediako From Spurs

July 30th, 2024 at 10:05pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Grand Rapids Gold, the Nuggets‘ G League team, acquired the returning rights to center Charles Bediako in a deal with the Austin Spurs, according to OurSportsCentral.com. The Spurs‘ affiliate received the returning player rights of Jamorko Pickett and Reggie Kissoonlal.

Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups believes Russell Westbrook will be a good fit with the Nuggets, adding toughness and a mentality that will make the team better, he told Sean Keeler of The Denver Post. “Russ does help that (depth),” Billups said. “He helps bring some of those things. Obviously, (he and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are) totally different players. But, yeah, losing KCP was — I’m happy and proud of him for getting to capitalize (financially) on the great years that he had here — but it’s a substantial loss.”
DeAndre Jordan‘s one-year contract with the Nuggets is worth the minimum salary, Hoops Rumors has confirmed. Jordan’s deal was originally reported to be worth $3.6MM, which would have been possible if he were re-signed using his Early Bird rights, but it’s simply a veteran’s minimum contract, which will pay the veteran center approximately $3.3MM.

Nuggets Sign Spencer Jones To Two-Way Contract

July 30th, 2024 at 2:22pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 30: The Nuggets have officially signed Jones to a two-way contract, they confirmed today in a press release.

JULY 19: The Nuggets will fill their open two-way contract slot by signing undrafted rookie free agent Spencer Jones to a two-way deal, reports Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (Twitter link).

A 6’7″ forward, Jones spent all five of his college seasons at Stanford from 2019-24, starting 139 of his 146 games during that time. As a super-senior last season, he averaged 11.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.4 steals in 29.1 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .438/.409/.645.

Jones was a 39.7% three-point shooter on 5.4 attempts per contest across his five seasons with the Cardinal, setting a school record with 315 career made three-pointers. Denver likes his combination of size, skill, and shooting, according to Durando.

Jones was on the Trail Blazers’ Summer League roster in Las Vegas. He came off the bench in Portland’s first game last Saturday, but was ruled out for Monday’s contest due to an illness and hasn’t played since.

Denver filled its other two-way slots earlier this month by signing two other undrafted rookies, Trey Alexander and PJ Hall. Once they complete their reported signings of Jones, Russell Westbrook, and DeAndre Jordan, the Nuggets will have 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts and three on two-way deals, so they’ll essentially be set for the regular season.

A player who spends the entire 2024/25 season on a two-way deal will be eligible to appear in up to 50 NBA regular season games and will earn a salary of $578,577.

Coaches, Scouts, Execs Weigh In On NBA Offseason Moves

July 29th, 2024 at 3:05pm CST by Rory Maher

While there are still some noteworthy free agents who have yet to find new teams, we’re currently in a relatively slow period for NBA transactions, as most teams have a pretty good idea of what their rosters will look like ahead of the 2024/25 season.

With that in mind, Tim Bontemps of ESPN (subscription required) recently spoke to 18 NBA coaches, scouts and executives to solicit their (anonymous) opinions on the biggest moves made so far in the 2024 offseason.

Here are some highlights from Bontemps’ survey, which is worth reading in full for those who subscribe to ESPN+:

Which team had the best offseason?

Sixers (8 votes), Knicks (5), Thunder (3), Celtics.

“They took themselves to the next level,” an East executive said of the 76ers. “We’ll see if it’s good enough, but you went from Point A to Point B.”

Which team had the worst offseason?

Nuggets (6 votes), Bulls (5), Clippers (4), Lakers (1), Knicks (1), Pistons (1).

As Bontemps writes, Denver (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope), Chicago (Alex Caruso, DeMar DeRozan) and the Clippers (Paul George) received the majority of the votes for losing key players in free agency and/or trades.

Interestingly, while Philadelphia signing George to a four-year, maximum-salary contract received the most votes (six) for the best offseason move, it also tied for the most votes (three) for worst move. A total of 10 different answers were given for worst move, including the Bulls and Kings receiving three votes apiece for their parts in the DeRozan sign-and-trade.

As for the most surprising move, the Knicks’ blockbuster trade with the Nets for Mikal Bridges received the most votes (five) in Bontemps’ survey, followed by George leaving Los Angeles (three) and the swap of Caruso for Josh Giddey (two). Eight other moves each received one vote.

Bontemps also asked questions about the top offseason trend, the effectiveness of the new CBA, and whether there will be an increase in tanking ahead of the 2025 draft.

Nuggets Sign Jahmir Young To Training Camp Deal

July 27th, 2024 at 6:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jahmir Young has signed a training camp contract with the Nuggets, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link). Denver’s agreement with Young was first reported after last month’s draft.

The 23-year-old point guard earned All-Big Ten honors in each of the last two seasons at Maryland. Prior to that, he played three years at Charlotte and was named to the All-Conference USA team each season.

Young appeared in 32 games with the Terrapins as a super senior, averaging 20.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 35.4 minutes per night. He played for Denver’s Summer League team in Las Vegas, posting 9.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists in five games.

Denver also recently signed forwards Gabe McGlothan and Jaylin Williams to training camp deals.