Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Waive Chasson Randle, Grant Golden

October 15th, 2022 at 3:52pm CST by Rory Maher

The Nuggets have waived guard Chasson Randle and undrafted rookie forward Grant Golden, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post, who adds that both players are expected to land with the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s G League affiliate (Twitter links).

Randle and Golden were signed to Exhibit 10 contracts, so they could each receive a bonus worth up to $50K if they spend at least 60 days with the Gold.

Randle, 29, has appeared in a total of 119 NBA regular season games for the Sixers, Knicks, Wizards, Warriors and Magic since making his debut in January 2017. He holds career averages of 5.7 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists on .401/.361/.799 shooting in 16.1 minutes per contest.

Golden, 24, spent his entire college career at Richmond, averaging 13.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 2.9 APG on .506/.280/.706 shooting in 37 games (27.6 MPG) as a “super senior” in 2021/22. After going undrafted, the 6’10” forward played for the Hawks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, logging limited minutes in four appearances.

The Nuggets now have a full 15-man standard roster (all on guaranteed contracts) and both two-way slots filled, so it appears as though their regular season roster is set.

Northwest Notes: Nuggets, McDaniels, Azubuike, Sharpe

October 14th, 2022 at 12:56pm CST by Luke Adams

After replacing his old boss Tim Connelly this offseason, new Nuggets head of basketball operations Calvin Booth had a busy summer, trading for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith, signing Bruce Brown and DeAndre Jordan in free agency, and using first-round picks on Christian Braun and Peyton Watson.

Speaking to Mark Medina of NBA.com, Booth said the Nuggets’ offseason goals were to upgrade their defense, get more athletic, and add more two-way talents. He feels the team accomplished those goals.

“With KCP, we have one of the best 3-and-D guys in the league, someone with championship experience and a proven vet,” Booth said. “Bruce was one of the most underrated guys in the league last season. We’re finding that out every day in the game with how sophisticated of a game he has.

“Christian and Peyton will eventually address those needs. We valued DeAndre’s vet leadership and the way he communicates. He’s one of the best rebounders of his generation, and he can still do that. Ish Smith has been a great addition as well and brings different levels of speed and pace to the game.”

In his Q&A with Medina, Booth also discussed several other Nuggets-related topics, including Nikola Jokic‘s chances of winning a third consecutive MVP award, Jamal Murray‘s return from an ACL tear, and Booth’s own contract extension with the franchise.

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Even though John Hollinger of The Athletic believes the Nuggets have a chance to come out of the West this season, he thinks there are still too many question marks related to the team’s depth and returning stars to actually forecast such a scenario. In his preview of Denver’s season, Hollinger projects a 50-32 record and a fourth-place finish in the West.
Jaden McDaniels will be the Timberwolves‘ starting small forward to open the 2022/23 season, sources tell Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports. McDaniels, whom the team worked hard to keep out of the Rudy Gobert trade, will fill out a star-studded lineup that features Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns up front, with Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell in the backcourt.
Jazz center Udoka Azubuike, who underwent surgery on his right foot and ankle in March, was cleared to practice in full on Thursday for the first time in seven months, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. “I was excited about it,” Azubuike said. “We did some exercises in the morning before practice, and that felt good. Then, me going out there, getting a rep and you know, I’m just excited. It really felt good.” It remains to be seen if the former first-round pick will earn a spot on Utah’s regular season roster, since the team has 18 players on standard contracts and will need to make cuts by Monday.
Trail Blazers rookie Shaedon Sharpe has signed with agent Mike George of One Legacy Sports for representation, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Northwest Notes: Brown, Gay, Lillard, Trail Blazers

October 13th, 2022 at 9:27pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

New Nuggets addition Bruce Brown seems to be the exact defensive puzzle piece the team had been missing, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post (subscriber-exclusive link).

“When I realized that Bruce was still available (as a free agent), that was, ‘Hey man, this is a guy that we need,’” head coach Michael Malone said, adding that he communicated that to team GM Calvin Booth during the offseason. “You might score on him, but he’s not gonna back down.”

The 26-year-old inked a two-year, $13MM deal with the Nuggets this summer.

Singer notes that the 6’4″ Brown possesses a versatility that allows him to cover opposing positions ranging from point guards to power forwards, and can function in a variety of ways on offense as well. Malone has been making a concerted effort to play Brown at the point to see what he can do as a play-maker.

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

The Jazz face some tough choices when it comes to how they want to use veteran power forward Rudy Gay this season, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. As Todd outlines, the team could look to showcase the 36-year-old either to boost his trade value or to use him as a mentor to their rebuilding roster, or the club could opt to waive the remaining two years and $12.7MM remaining on his current contract.
Though Trail Blazers star point guard Damian Lillard could have demanded a trade out of town, he decided instead to stick around as the team re-tools. Logan Murdock of The Ringer details how Lillard questioned the team’s direction following a 2021 first-round playoff exit. “It just had reached the point where I was like, ‘Is what I want the same as what the organization wants?’” Lillard told Murdock. “Do we actually want to win, or is it a situation where, ‘We’re going to be good enough, we know Dame is going to put his best foot forward and it’s going to be entertaining, we’re going to be competitive, we’re going to have a chance in the playoffs.’”
Following an underwhelming 1-4 preseason finish, which included three blowout defeats, the Trail Blazers and second-year head coach Chauncey Billups could have a rough road reaching even a .500 record, let alone a postseason return, opines Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian (subscriber-exclusive link).

Nuggets Cut Kellan Grady

October 12th, 2022 at 10:19am CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets have waived camp invitee Kellan Grady, according to the NBA.com transaction log.

Grady, who went undrafted out of Kentucky this June, spent his first four college seasons at Davidson and was the team’s primary offensive weapon across those four years, averaging 17.4 PPG with a .366 3PT% in 115 games. He transferred to the Wildcats for his “super-senior” year in 2021/22 and averaged 11.4 PPG with a .415 3PT% in 34 games (32.9 MPG) last season.

The Nuggets signed Grady to an Exhibit 10 contract in July and he suited up for Denver’s Summer League team in Las Vegas.

Now that he has been waived, Grady will likely report to the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s G League affiliate. The terms of his agreement with the team call for him to receive a $50K bonus if he spends at least 60 days with Grand Rapids.

The Nuggets now have 19 players under contract — 15 on guaranteed deals, a pair on two-way contracts, and Chasson Randle and Grant Golden on Exhibit 10 pacts.

Nuggets Re-Sign Grant Golden

October 11th, 2022 at 11:46am CST by Luke Adams

After waiving him on Friday, the Nuggets re-signed rookie forward Grant Golden on Monday, per RealGM’s transaction log and the team’s official website.

Golden, who spent his entire college career at Richmond, averaged 13.7 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 2.9 APG on .506/.280/.706 shooting in 37 games (27.6 MPG) as a “super senior” in 2021/22.

After going undrafted, the 6’10” forward played for the Hawks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas, logging limited minutes in four appearances, then signed with Denver in September.

It’s unclear why the Nuggets waived and then re-signed Golden, since his initial deal was an Exhibit 10 contract and he’s expected to ultimately report to the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s G League affiliate. For the time being though, he remains on Denver’s 20-man roster, which is once again full after the club also signed Chasson Randle.

Nuggets Sign Chasson Randle To Exhibit 10 Deal

October 10th, 2022 at 1:55pm CST by Rory Maher

The Nuggets have signed guard Chasson Randle to an Exhibit 10 deal, the team announced. Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports was the first to report the signing (via Twitter).

Randle, 29, has appeared in a total of 119 NBA regular season games for the Sixers, Knicks, Wizards, Warriors and Magic since making his debut in January 2017. He holds career averages of 5.7 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists on .401/.361/.799 shooting in 16.1 minutes per contest.

Last October, Randle signed a training camp deal with the Suns and appeared in four preseason games, but was waived before the start of the regular season. He later signed with the New Zealand Breakers of the Australian National Basketball League in December, holding modest averages of 7.8 points and 1.4 rebounds on .371/.315/.793 shooting in 17 games (19.4 minutes).

Randle, who has also played in China and Spain, is ineligible to have his Exhibit 10 contract converted to a two-way deal because he holds four years of NBA experience, so the most likely outcome is he’ll be waived before the regular season opener and head to Denver’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold. In that scenario, he could earn a bonus of up to $50K if he sticks with the Gold for at least 60 days.

Nuggets Release Adonis Arms, Grant Golden

October 9th, 2022 at 4:41pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

4:41pm: The Nuggets have officially waived both Arms and Golden, according to NBA.com’s transaction log. That leaves the team with 18 players under contract for the time being.

3:07pm: The Nuggets will waive Exhibit 10 signee Adonis Arms, per Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link).

The 6’5″ guard will now be able to sign on with Denver’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold, according to Wind, who adds that the Nuggets could ink another player to an Exhibit 10 contract by Monday.

Arms went unsigned out of Texas Tech this past summer. During his 2021/22 season with the team, he averaged 8.6 PPG on .448/.308/.744 shooting, along with 4.4 RPG, 2.8 APG and 1.0 SPG.

Denver is currently fielding a full 15-man roster. Both its two-way player slots are also occupied. Kellan Grady and Grant Golden will be the team’s remaining Exhibit 10 players when Arms’ release becomes official.

Zeke Nnaji Bulks Up In Hopes Of Expanded Role

October 9th, 2022 at 2:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

After spending the summer in the weight room, Nuggets power forward Zeke Nnaji has added 10 pounds of muscle and increased his vertical leap by four inches, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Nnaji will be competing with veteran center DeAndre Jordan for backup minutes in the front court. “I’ve really taken a giant leap coming into my third year,” he said. “This is an important year for me.”

Murray Calls Latest Injury Just 'Cramp'

October 8th, 2022 at 10:37am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets got a scare on Friday when Jamal Murray exited early with an apparent thigh injury. However, Murray just dismissed it as a cramp, he told Mike Singer of the Denver Post. “It was frustrating, but it’s OK,” Murray said. “It’s just a cramp. It’s not like it was a pull. Nothing serious. My body hasn’t had this much since training camp, three-hour practices and all that. I guess I’m just adjusting to the workload, that’s all.”

Northwest Notes: S. Johnson, Jazz, Murray, Blazers, Thunder

October 7th, 2022 at 2:03pm CST by Luke Adams

The Jazz are currently carrying 18 players on guaranteed contracts, with non-guaranteed camp invitee Cody Zeller also vying for a spot on the regular season roster, so Stanley Johnson – acquired from the Lakers in August’s Patrick Beverley trade – isn’t a lock to make the 15-man squad. However, head coach Will Hardy liked what Johnson provided to the team during its second preseason game on Tuesday, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News.

“Stanley really brought a lot of energy and toughness in particular on the defensive end tonight,” Hardy said after the game. “That’s his identity as a player, that’s how he can help our team, is by being somebody who has a massive impact on the defensive end… He’s really handled himself well, all throughout camp, not only with how he’s played, but how he’s interacted with his teammates, and I was really happy for him tonight.”

Assuming they don’t make any more trades before opening night, the Jazz will have to cut four players currently on standard contracts. Besides Johnson and Zeller, Saben Lee, Udoka Azubuike, and Leandro Bolmaro are among the other players whose roster spots may not be assured.

Here are a few more notes from around the Northwest:

Given that even the NBA’s worst team only has a 14% shot at the No. 1 overall pick, Tony Jones of The Athletic argues that the Jazz shouldn’t deliberately tank for Victor Wembanyama and suggests that establishing “winning habits” will be a priority in Utah. Given the lack of elite talent on the roster, the Jazz should still finish in the lottery and will be in position to draft a solid prospect even if they don’t land Wembanyama.
Speaking to Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report (video link), Nuggets guard Jamal Murray said he and the team had hoped he could return from his torn ACL in time for last season’s playoff series vs. Golden State, but he realized as he was ramping up to return that he still wasn’t mentally ready to play. “Six months later, I’m in a completely different space than I was before,” said Murray, who added that he’s glad he didn’t attempt to return last season.
Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic takes a closer look at Mike Schmitz‘s decision to leave his job as an ESPN draft analyst for an assistant GM role with the Trail Blazers. According to Vorkunov, Schmitz’s responsibilities in Portland cover more than just the draft, as he’s also getting involved in work related to the salary cap, analytics, and more.
The Trail Blazers and Thunder both finished in the lottery last season, and John Hollinger of The Athletic expects that to happen again in 2022/23, despite the moves Portland made to upgrade its roster. Hollinger projects the Blazers to finish at 36-46 and 11th in the Western Conference, while picking the Thunder to be the West’s worst team at 20-62.