After their exceptional roster moves in last year’s offseason, the Denver Nuggets were positioned as title contenders. Despite a promising regular season (54-28), however, the Nuggets’ first-round exit from this year’s playoffs hints at some large-scale changes.
Denver’s front office will be hard at work while charting out the course of action in the offseason. Although there is uncertainty about the status of several players on the roster moving forward, Jonas Valanciunas offered some valuable insight during a recent interview with Basketball Sphere.
While discussing the ambiguity surrounding his own situation with Denver, Valanciunas stated:
“First of all, everything depends on whether they trade me, keep me, or not. That is their decision. Right now, I think their bigger question is what they will do with the roster in general, who stays, and who leaves. As far as I understand, only Nikola Jokic is untouchable, while everyone else can be traded.”
After being eliminated from the playoffs, Nikola Jokic was among the first players to express his commitment to playing for the franchise, hinting that he had no intention of leaving. Needless to say, this was a positive sign for Denver.
Jokic is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world. Having finished second in the MVP race behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after another season of averaging a triple-double (27.7 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 10.7 APG), the Nuggets’ superstar is truly in a league of his own.
Realistically, this aspect of Valanciunas’ comment is not surprising. Given that Nikola Jokic is one of the most impactful players in the NBA, parting with him would be irrational on Denver’s part. To that note, even Nuggets president Josh Kroenke has asserted that Jokic is off the table in all trade discussions.
However, Jokic’s upcoming four-year, $278 million extension could be the greater point of focus.
The Nuggets currently have one of the most expensive Big 3s in the league. With a total of $142.8 million committed to the trio of Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon, Denver will find itself in a precarious position next season once Christian Braun‘s extension and Peyton Watson‘s new contract come into play. When also factoring in Jokic’s new cap hit, the Nuggets may have their hands tied when signing other players to fill out the roster.
In light of their performance this year, along with the fact that they are already deep into luxury tax territory, a roster shakeup seems inevitable. Thus, it becomes easier to believe the rumors suggesting that both Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon may also end up on the trade block to help Denver shed some salary before the new season begins.
The offseason could be an intriguing one for the Nuggets. While uncertainty remains, Valanciunas stated that it is likely things will become clear by the first week of July. Given that several players, including some stars, could be on the trade block, should Denver choose to issue a fire sale, expect several teams to emerge as buyers.
