The Nuggets recently signed Spencer Jones to a two-year, $12 million extension despite a looming luxury tax bill of unprecedented heights. They matched an offer sheet that Jones had signed as a restricted free agent with the Thunder.
Subsequently, the 25-year-old took to social media and broke down the three key decisions that helped him reach this point in his career.
“I recently signed a two-year, $12M NBA contract. Looking back, three decisions shaped how I got here:
“1. Turned down an extra ~$250K to transfer for my fifth year and stayed at Stanford.”
“2. Chose to go undrafted instead of getting drafted so I could pick the best situation. That led me to Denver.”
“3. Turned down a ~$2M guaranteed extension to bet on myself in free agency. I risked injury, poor play, or getting nothing. I ended up earning roughly three times that offer.”
“Three times I had the opportunity to take the money/status in front of me. Three times I chose the option I thought gave me the best long-term expected value. $250K → No. Getting drafted → No. $2M guaranteed → No. Eventually → $12M. Sometimes the biggest risk is taking the safe option too early,” wrote Jones on X.
After the contract extension, Jones also took to LinkedIn and shared four key takeaways from his free-agency experience.
“Finally, my free agency is over. It was a much longer and mentally taxing process than I expected. 25 days of daily calls with my agent, face-to-face meetings with opposing GMs, and countless rumors.”
“Four things stuck with me: 1. Don’t get too high or too low. Everything changes on a whim. A team that’s all in on Monday goes quiet by Wednesday. And a team you never spoke to suddenly approaches with a potential offer. And sometimes other people’s decisions can completely disrupt your timeline (Shoutout LeBron 😂)
“2. The years on your contract can sometimes matter just as much as money. You only get a couple of paydays throughout your career. Timing them up correctly can be the difference of millions. Where are you at in your career? What’s the trajectory of the team? Expansion teams are coming in two years; a new CBA in 3. All these can affect another payday.
“3. The work doesn’t stop. I was in Denver’s facilities through much of the negotiations, training around the same people deciding whether to keep me. Passing GMs in the hallway and making small talk. Acting like everything was normal when nothing was.
“4. Don’t plan a vacation until you’re officially signed. I had a trip planned months in advance out of the country. On the first day of the trip, my agent calls that a team agreed to our terms. I’m signing. Within 24 hours of landing, I’m flying back to the States for a physical. Meet a whole new staff, complete several hours of tests and scans, sign the contract, then fly right back.
“The announcements look clean, but the process is chaos. Glad it’s over. Can’t wait to do it again in two years…. 😅” wrote Jones on LinkedIn.
After playing only 20 games as an undrafted player in his rookie season (2024-25), Spencer Jones earned regular rotation minutes in just his second season with the team.
He played in 70 games for the Nuggets (including the playoffs), averaging 5.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 0.8 steals while shooting 51.6% from the field and 42.0% from three-point range.
And despite being in a position where the Nuggets needed an open roster spot and had to clear cap space for Peyton Watson, Spencer Jones leveraged his contributions into a guaranteed $6 million annual average value contract, which is three times the $2 million offer he rejected last season.
In total, he has secured a contract about six times larger than what he previously could (a two-year guarantee and a $11.75 million contract). While Spencer Jones has reaped the benefits of betting on himself in free agency, it may not be the best principle to follow in all cases.
Sometimes it leads to Dennis Schroder-type situations. But it is certainly reassuring to see that having faith in your own abilities has helped an undrafted player change his life altogether in the NBA.
