Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Notes: Jokic, Officiating, Second Unit, KCP

December 15th, 2023 at 6:53pm CST by Rory Maher

While Bozidar Maljkovic — the president of Serbia’s Olympic committee — previously stated that Nuggets star Nikola Jokic would represent his home country at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, the reigning Finals MVP recently said he hasn’t decided yet if he’ll participate, as BasketNews.com relays.

“It’s far. Some people put words in my mouth that I said something that I didn’t. The head coach is the first to know [my commitment]. I always talk to the family and the team after the season,” Jokic told Aleksandar Zigic of RTS.

After Denver’s lengthy playoff run ended in its first championship, Jokic decided to sit out the World Cup over the summer. Despite missing the best player on the team, the Serbians took home the silver medal behind strong performances from Bogdan Bogdanovic and other teammates.

Here are a few more notes on the defending champions:

Jokic has been ejected from two games over the past month for arguing with officials about foul non-calls. The second incident occurred on Tuesday in Chicago, with Jokic immediately kicked out despite not having any technical fouls leading up to that point. When asked about how Jokic is officiated, head coach Michael Malone said he’s discussed it with the NBA, according to Ryan Blackburn of Mile High Sports (Twitter link). “I’ve been contacting the league and having conversations about certain plays, certain games where we don’t think he’s getting the whistle he deserves,” Malone said as a part of a larger quote.
The team’s bench is trending in a positive direction after some up-and-down play to open 2023/24, writes Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. Second-year players Christian Braun and Peyton Watson, plus rookie Julian Strawther, “have become the backbone” of Denver’s second unit, according to Wind, who takes a closer look at the play of Braun and Watson in particular.
Starting shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope sat out Thursday’s victory over Brooklyn after being placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol and will be sidelined for Saturday’s contest against Oklahoma City as well, per Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette (Twitter links). Caldwell-Pope is shooting 40.4% from three-point range and is frequently tasked with defending the opponent’s top perimeter scorer. He’s making $14.7MM this season and holds a $15.4MM player option for ’24/25.

Hall Of Famer George McGinnis Passes Away

December 14th, 2023 at 8:01am CST by Luke Adams

Former NBA and ABA star George McGinnis has died at age 73, the Pacers announced today in a press release. McGinnis passed away early on Thursday morning due to complications from a cardiac arrest he suffered last week.

An Indianapolis native, McGinnis played his college ball with the Hoosiers, then joined the Pacers in 1971. He helped the franchise claim a pair of ABA championships in 1972 and 1973, earning three ABA All-Star nods from 1973-75 and co-MVP honors (with Julius Erving) in ’75, when he lead the league in scoring.

McGinnis later made the move to the NBA and teamed up with Erving in Philadelphia, playing for the Sixers from 1975-78. He made two All-Star teams as a 76er and one more with the Nuggets in 1979 before rejoining the Pacers from 1980-82 to finish his playing career.

In 842 career NBA and ABA games, McGinnis scored 17,009 points and grabbed 9,233 rebounds, good for a double-double average (20.2 PPG, 11.0 RPG). He was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame as a player in 2017.

As the Pacers’ press release notes, McGinnis is one of four players in franchise history to have his number (No. 30) retired. Reggie Miller (31), Mel Daniels (34), and Roger Brown (35) are the others.

Our condolences go out to McGinnis’ friends and family.

And-Ones: NBA Media Rights, McLemore, Experiments, Jokic

December 13th, 2023 at 3:00pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the NBA’s current television/media rights deal doesn’t expire until the end of the 2024/25 season, most sources expect a new agreement to be reached by the summer of 2024, according to Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico (subscription required).

There was some speculation in recent years that the NBA’s next media rights deal could triple its current nine-year, $24 billion contract in terms of total value, but most teams are expecting an increase in the range of 100-150% rather than 200%, says Badenhausen. The next agreement could include as many as five broadcast partners, including three on the “linear side” and two streaming services, Badenhausen adds.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

After parting ways with Greek team AEK Athens, longtime NBA guard Ben McLemore appears to be close to lining up his next destination in Europe. Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com reports that McLemore is in advanced talks to join Manisa Büyükşehir Belediyespor, which is 6-5 in Turkish League play so far, tied for fifth out of 16 teams. McLemore, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2013 draft, last played in the NBA in 2021/22 with Portland.
In an entertaining piece for The Ringer, Howard Beck rates the NBA’s best and worst experiments of the Adam Silver era, from the play-in tournament (five stars) to disasters like shirseys and the creation of an end-of-season awards show (one star apiece).
Elsewhere at The Ringer, NBA writers Beck, Danny Chau, Rob Mahoney, Zach Kram, and Michael Pina handed out their awards for the first quarter of the 2023/24 season. The only award they fully agreed on was Most Valuable Player — all five votes went to Nuggets star Nikola Jokic.

Warriors, Knicks, Lakers Top Latest NBA Franchise Valuations

December 13th, 2023 at 2:06pm CST by Luke Adams

The Warriors remain the NBA’s most valuable team, according to Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico (subscription required), who unveiled the website’s updated NBA franchise valuations for 2023 on Wednesday.

Badenhausen projects the Warriors’ value at $8.28 billion, making them one of three teams to surpass the $7 billion mark this year. The Knicks have a projected worth of $7.43 billion, while the Lakers come in at $7.34 billion, per Sportico.

As Badenhausen details, Sportico spoke to more than 30 team executives, owners, investors, bankers, consultants, and lawyers in compiling their latest NBA franchise valuations. According to Sportico, the average value of an NBA team is up 33% from a year ago and 70% from when the site first started publishing valuations three years ago.

A combination of factors are contributing to the soaring value of NBA franchises, says Baudenhausen. Those factors include national media deals, international opportunities, scarcity (ie. only 30 teams are available), and an equal 1/30th stake in the league.

In the past, we’ve used Forbes as our primary source for NBA franchise valuations, but with Badenhausen making the move from Forbes to Sportico in recent years and the outlet establishing itself as a go-to resource for sports business news, we’re highlighting Sportico’s projections in 2023.

Of course, it’s worth noting that figures from Sportico, Forbes, or any other media outlet are just estimates and often don’t quite match up with the sale prices for franchises that change hands. But thse projections are usually in the right ballpark and remain useful for getting a sense of the league’s most and least valuable teams.

Here’s Sportico’s full list of NBA franchise valuations for 2023:

Golden State Warriors: $8.28 billion
New York Knicks: $7.43 billion
Los Angeles Lakers: $7.34 billion
Boston Celtics: $5.12 billion
Chicago Bulls: $4.83 billion
Los Angeles Clippers: $4.56 billion
Miami Heat: $4.17 billion
Philadelphia 76ers: $4.13 billion
Toronto Raptors: $4.11 billion
Houston Rockets: $4.05 billion
Dallas Mavericks: $4.03 billion
Phoenix Suns: $4 billion
Brooklyn Nets: $3.98 billion
Sacramento Kings: $3.46 billion
Denver Nuggets: $3.4 billion
Atlanta Hawks: $3.35 billion
Washington Wizards: $3.33 billion
San Antonio Spurs: $3.29 billion
Portland Trail Blazers: $3.28 billion
Indiana Pacers: $3.27 billion
Utah Jazz: $3.24 billion
Cleveland Cavaliers: $3.22 billion
Milwaukee Bucks: $3.2 billion
Orlando Magic: $3.12 billion
Detroit Pistons: $3.1 billion
Oklahoma City Thunder: $3.08 billion
Charlotte Hornets: $3 billion
Minnesota Timberwolves: $2.94 billion
Memphis Grizzlies: $2.82 billion
New Orleans Pelicans: $2.72 billion

For the most part, the most significant valuation increases (by percentage) within the last year belonged to the teams on the bottom half of this list. Besides the Bucks, whose projection rose by 32%, every franchise in the bottom 10 received at least a 50% bump from Sportico’s 2022 valuations.

The Nuggets, who cracked the top half of this list following their 2023 championship, were another big riser — their valuation increased by 60% and they moved up six spots.

It’s worth noting that the Mavericks‘ reported valuation in Mark Cuban‘s sale to the Adelson and Dumont families reportedly came in around $3.5 billion, well below Sportico’s valuation.

However, more recent reporting has suggested the final valuation will be closer to $4 billion when the transaction closes. That was also a unique situation since Cuban is retaining control of basketball operations as part of the sale agreement, despite surrendering majority control of the business. He’ll hang onto about 25% of the franchise, according to Sportico.

Northwest Notes: SGA, OKC, K. George, Jazz, R. Jackson

December 12th, 2023 at 9:26am CST by Luke Adams

After finishing fifth in NBA MVP voting in 2022/23, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is building another strong case for the award this season, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.

Gilgeous-Alexander is once again averaging over 30 points per game through his first 21 contests, and he’s scoring those points more efficiently, with career highs in field goal percentage (55.0%) and free throw percentage (91.7%). He’s also dishing a career-best 6.2 assists and is leading the NBA with 2.8 steals per night, establishing himself as a legitimate All-Defensive candidate, Mussatto opines. On top of all that, Oklahoma City’s 15-7 record is good for second place in the Western Conference.

According to Mussatto, if he were casting an MVP ballot today he’d have usual suspects Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid at the top, but Gilgeous-Alexander would come be at No. 3.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Oklahoma City voters will head to the polls on Tuesday to decide whether or not to approve a six-year, one percent sales tax that would help fund a new arena for the Thunder. Sean Murphy of The Associated Press has the story on the vote and the plan for a new arena, which is expected to cost at least $900MM.
The Jazz were beaten soundly in Oklahoma City on Monday to fall to 7-16 on the season, but the play of rookie guard Keyonte George was a silver lining, as he scores 30 points for the first time in his professional career, per Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune. “Tonight is good for his mentality,” head coach Will Hardy said. “Now he’s seen himself do it. … There’s always a part of your brain that’s not sure if you can actually do it.”
After the good vibes that last season generated, the Jazz have to tread carefully as they struggle to compile wins this season, writes Tony Jones of The Athletic. While Utah isn’t expected to be a playoff or play-in team, the club needs to make sure it’s competing hard and playing the right way to avoid developing a losing culture, Jones notes.
Speaking to Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, Nuggets guard Reggie Jackson discussed what it meant to win an NBA championship, taking on a bigger role in Denver this season, and the opportunity to play alongside Nikola Jokic (“the best player in the world”), among other topics.

Northwest Notes: Watson, Edwards, Milton, Jazz

December 9th, 2023 at 2:51pm CST by Luke Adams

A rotation player this season after logging limited minutes as a rookie, second-year Nuggets guard Peyton Watson has Deion Sanders’ portrait in his locker to remind of the type of defender he wants to be, writes Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette. Watson, who has earned praise from teammates Nikola Jokic and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for his defensive play and his energy, explained his thinking.

“I just thought it was the most admirable thing that teams would literally throw away from his side (first) through (third) downs. Then, on fourth down, (they) punt out of bounds so he couldn’t return it. Like, you can’t even let this guy get involved in the game,” Watson said. “I admire the mentality and how he approached the game.”

While minutes have fluctuated this fall for some of the Nuggets’ reserves, Watson has remained a part of head coach Michael Malone‘s regular second unit, averaging more than 21 minutes per night in his past six games.

“He can guard bigs. He can guard smalls. I like how he’s playing right now,” Malone said. “He’s helping impact the game in a positive manner right now, and it’s great to see for a young player, taking advantage of the opportunities that’s being given to him.”

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, who recently missed two games with a hip pointer and appeared to be favoring that hip in his return on Wednesday, exited Friday’s game after just three minutes (Twitter link). He’s undergoing further examination on Saturday and it remains unclear whether he’ll miss any additional time, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
The Shake Milton that scored 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting in Friday’s win over Memphis was the player the Timberwolves thought they were getting when they signed him in free agency this summer, according to Krawczynski, who suggests Minnesota will become an even more dangerous team if the guard’s Friday performance wasn’t a one-off. Head coach Chris Finch has been pushing the struggling Milton to be more confident and assertive, which was reflected in his play in Memphis, Krawczynski adds.
While Salt Lake City officials are working hard to keep the Jazz in the downtown area, the franchise has explored the possibility of building a new arena outside the city, including perhaps at the south end of Salt Lake County, according to Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune (subscription required). Larsen takes a deep dive into the story, examining the factors at play and clarifying that the team won’t be moving out of the Delta Center anytime soon.

Injury Notes: Beal, J. Murray, Jazz, Magic

December 6th, 2023 at 8:31am CST by Luke Adams

Suns guard Bradley Beal has been limited to just three games for his new team so far this season and hasn’t played since November 12 due to back problems. However, the hope is that he won’t be sidelined for too much longer, Shams Charania of The Athletic said during an appearance on The Rally (Twitter video link).

“I’m told Beal has started his ramp-up process and he’s continuing to progress in that ramp-up,” Charania said. “The goal is to track toward a return soon, potentially over the next 10 days, as long as the progress continues. But we know it’s been a fluid process with this back (issue). The back can be something that you have to be cautious with.”

As Charania notes, the Suns are willing to be patient with Beal since their priority is to be healthy when the postseason begins in the spring — they’d rather hold him out for a few extra games now if it means having him available in April.

Phoenix has also been playing relatively well without its third star, lessening the need to get Beal back on the court as soon as possible. Since Devin Booker returned on Nov. 15, the Suns are 8-3 — and Booker sat out one of those three losses.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, who injured his right ankle in his first game back from a hamstring injury last Wednesday, is considered questionable to return to action tonight vs. the Clippers, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. “Hamstring’s fine. I’ve worked enough to get it back to strength,” Murray said. “Now it’s just another thing.” As Durando points out, Murray would become eligible for a super-max extension if he earns All-NBA honors this season, but he’ll fall short of the 65-game minimum required for All-NBA consideration if he misses five more contests.
Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson will miss a third straight game on Wednesday in Dallas due to a right thigh contusion, the team announced (via Twitter). Kelly Olynyk (right shoulder strain) has been ruled out for a second consecutive game, while Lauri Markkanen (left hamstring strain) will remain unavailable for a sixth game in a row. The expectation is that Markkanen will be reevaluated at some point this week, at which time we may get a better sense of his recovery timeline.
Magic guard Markelle Fultz (left knee tendinitis), who has been ruled out for a 13th straight game, is “progressing slowly” and still isn’t doing full contact work in practices, head coach Jamahl Mosley said on Tuesday, per Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (subscription required). Jonathan Isaac, who has logged just seven minutes in Orlando’s past four games due to ankle issues, is listed as questionable for Wednesday’s game in Cleveland, Beede adds.

Nikola Jokic, Jayson Tatum Named Players Of The Month

December 4th, 2023 at 3:17pm CST by Rory Maher

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have been named the NBA’s players of the month, the league announced on Monday (Twitter link). Jokic won for the Western conference, while Tatum won for the East.

A two-time MVP and the reigning Finals MVP, Jokic put up staggering averages of 29.0 points, 13.2 rebounds, 9.2 assists and 1.2 steals on .571/.316/.800 shooting in 18 games played in October and November (33.7 minutes). Denver went 12-6 in games he played and 13-6 overall the past two months.

Jokic, 28, currently leads the league in total points, rebounds and assists. On a per-game basis, he’s eighth in points, first in rebounds and third in assists.

Tatum, meanwhile, averaged 27.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.1 steals on .494/.361/.807 shooting in 18 games played in October and November (37.0 minutes). Boston went 14-4 in those games, which tied Minnesota for the best record in the league over that span (both clubs are now 15-4).

According to the NBA (Twitter links), the other nominees in the West were Anthony Davis, Luka Doncic, Kevin Durant, Anthony Edwards, De’Aaron Fox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Alperen Sengun, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, Paolo Banchero, Franz Wagner, Jalen Brunson, Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, Tyrese Haliburton and Donovan Mitchell were nominated in the East.

Northwest Notes: Nuggets, Jokic, Williams, Hendricks

December 3rd, 2023 at 7:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Heavy is the head who wears the crown? According to Tony Jones of The Athletic, that’s what the Nuggets are experiencing. Jamal Murray was out an extended period, they had to play five games in seven days, and they are taking everybody’s best punch.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone was proud of the way his weary team hung around in a loss to Sacramento on Saturday. They don’t play again until Wednesday. “We can certainly use the break,” Malone said.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic has been fined $2K for flopping, the NBA announced (via Twitter). Upon league office review, Jokic was assessed the flopping penalty after he fell backward while taking a shot in the fourth quarter against the Kings following minimal contact from Domantas Sabonis.
Jalen Williams has been an integral part of the Thunder’s early success this season, Rylan Stiles of ThunderousIntentions.com notes. Williams is tied with Chet Holmgren as the club’s second-leading scorer and has often carried the offensive load when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander rests at the start of the second and fourth quarters, yet the contributions of the second-year lottery pick are often overlooked.
Jazz rookie lottery pick Taylor Hendricks hasn’t played much, but he flashed intriguing potential with Lauri Markkanen and Kelly Olynyk sidelined by injuries against Portland on Saturday, according to the Salt Lake Tribune’s Eric Walden. While Hendricks posted modest stats in his 18-minute stint, he made notable defensive contributions, including a couple of blocks. “He was able to switch 1 to 4, and he was able to cause havoc, and that’s what we needed,” guard Collin Sexton said.

Injury Notes: Haliburton, Bam, K. Murray, Nuggets, Suns, Hornets

December 2nd, 2023 at 3:59pm CST by Rory Maher

Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton is expected to be out for Saturday’s game against Miami, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. Indiana’s best player is officially listed as questionable.

As Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star tweets, Haliburton missed the team’s shootaround this morning due to a right knee bone bruise and an upper respiratory infection. The Pacers went just 6-20 without Haliburton last season, notes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (via Twitter).

Haliburton, who signed a five-year, maximum-salary rookie scale extension in the offseason, is off to an All-NBA-caliber start to 2023/24, averaging career highs of 27.0 points and a league-leading 11.8 assists per game while posting an elite .519/.447/.880 shooting line. The Pacers host the Celtics on Monday for the quarterfinal of the league’s inaugural in-season tournament, so hopefully he’ll be back in time for that contest.

Heat center Bam Adebayo has also been ruled out of Saturday’s contest due to a left hip contusion, tweets Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald. Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel (subscriber link) wouldn’t be surprised to see Orlando Robinson get the starting nod in his place, with Kevin Love continuing to come off the bench due to the synergy he’s developing with the second unit.

Here are a few more injury notes from around the NBA:

Kings forward Keegan Murray, the No. 4 overall pick of last year’s draft, will return on Saturday against Denver after missing four games due to lower back soreness, sources tell Sean Cunningham of Fox 40 KTXL (Twitter link). As for the Nuggets, Jamal Murray (ankle) and Aaron Gordon (heel) are questionable after missing Friday’s game against Phoenix, according to Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link).
Suns star Devin Booker is questionable for Saturday’s contest vs. Memphis, notes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. Booker, who is dealing with an ankle sprain, missed Friday’s game against Denver. Eric Gordon is also questionable due to a right knee contusion.
Hornets backup center Nick Richards will return to action on Saturday after missing the previous six games while in the league’s concussion protocol, the team announced (via Twitter). No. 2 overall pick Brandon Miller will also be available after missing Charlotte’s last game with a left ankle injury.