Three messages in one night! The worst two leave the team, and the Nuggets can still compete for the championship next season?

Basketball Big History Ball

2024-06-28 13:51

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01 The Nuggets suffered three pieces of news during the draft that could affect the team's championship prospects.

02 Jamal Murray is expected to reach a four-year, 209 million contract extension with the Nuggets, but this year's playoff performance is poor, and whether it is worth four years and 209 million remains to be discussed.

03 Pope became a free agent, rejected the 15.4 million player option, tested the free market, and could get a two-year, 50 million contract.

04 The Nuggets traded with the Hornets to send away Reggie Jackson and hitch on three unprotected second-round picks, increasing the likelihood of keeping Pope.

05 However, Aaron Gordon will also enter a contract year next season, and keeping him will be a headache for Nuggets management, who will need to make key moves in the summer.

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As we all know, the Nuggets are considered one of the best teams in the game.

Although they were eliminated by the Timberwolves in the second round this year, in this round of the series, the Nuggets once overtook 3-2 after falling behind 0-2, and finally grabbed seven out of the game - if it weren't for the highly targeted Timberwolves in advance, the Nuggets have every hope to go further and even complete two consecutive championships.

Of course, if it's just if, the Nuggets have their sights set on next season, and as long as there is 3-time MVP Jokic, the Nuggets will still be a championship team, but this Nuggets has also encountered some trouble.

During the draft, in just 24 hours, there were three pieces of news from the Nuggets, which also had a big impact on the Nuggets' championship prospects.

1. Jamal Murray is expected to reach a 4-year 209 million contract extension with the Nuggets

Murray agreed with the Nuggets in 2019 to a five-year 170 million cap salary early extension, next season this contract will enter the final year, salary 36.01 million, if Murray can be selected to the best team next season, he will be eligible to reach a five-year 318 million super cap salary with the Nuggets.

However, judging from the latest news, Murray seems to have given up the possibility of a super cap salary, of course, this is not incomprehensible, after the best team is no longer divided, it is becoming more and more difficult for Murray to be selected - he did not even make an All-Star in the regular season, let alone the best team.

In fact, even if it is 209 million in 4 years, it is worth it is open to debate.

If the contract extension happened last offseason, I believe not many fans would question it, after all, Murray played a superstar or even superstar performance in the playoffs at that time, and helped the Nuggets win the first championship in team history.

But in this year's playoffs, Murray played quite badly, averaging only 20.6 points, 4.3 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game in 12 games, shooting 40.2% from the field, 31.5% from three-point range, and 47.4% from the field.

For comparison, in last year's playoffs, Murray averaged 26.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game, shooting 47.3% from the field, 39.6% from three-point range, and 58.6% from the field.

Murray's decline in level is a big reason for the Nuggets' second-round exit this year, he had two kills against the Lakers, but the overall performance was also inefficient, and the Timberwolves were even more ugly, almost locked by McDaniels and Edwards.

Looking at attendance, Murray has played just 172 games in the past four seasons and missed 23 games last season, and as a player with a history of serious injuries, it is impossible not to worry about his injury concerns.

Is a player who is not an All-Star, has a hard time with the All-Star team, has a playoff explosion but is seriously out of shape in this year's playoffs, and has injury concerns, worth 209 million in the next four years?

If it is placed on other teams, it may not necessarily be worth it, but in the Nuggets, considering his tacit cooperation with Jokic, and the fact that he has helped the Nuggets win championships, as well as Denver's small-ball market attributes, the Nuggets actually have no choice.

2. Pope rejected the 15.4 million player option to test the free market

Pope became a free agent on the same day that Murray could renew his contract, and he averaged 10.1 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game in the regular season this season, shooting 46.0%/40.6%/89.4% from three, and 60.2% from the field.

Pope didn't perform well in the playoffs this year, averaging only 8.1 points per game and shooting 32.7% from three-point range, but Pope is the most valuable 3D in the league today, and he also helped the Lakers and Nuggets win two championships, and entering the free market will definitely be coaxed.

The fact is that also today, there is news that the Magic are willing to give Pope a two-year contract of 50 million, in addition, strong teams including the 76ers and the Mavericks are also interested in Pope.

If you remember, the Nuggets faced that situation last year, when Bruce Brown became a free agent after winning the championship and then joined the Pacers for two years and 45 million.

However, Pope and Brown are in a different situation, last year's Brown was because he only played in the Nuggets for one year, and the Nuggets could only play 7 million for 1 year, and they definitely couldn't stay, but this time the Nuggets have Pope's bird rights, and they can stay as long as they spend money.

So is Pope worth 50 million for 2 years? Judging from this year's playoffs, it is definitely not worth it, but the Nuggets don't seem to have a choice, because even if Pope is gone, they have no salary space and can't find a suitable replacement.

3. The Nuggets traded with the Hornets to send away Reggie Jackson

Also today, the Nuggets traded with the Hornets, and the Nuggets sent away Reggie Jackson, three unprotected second-round picks, got air from the Hornets, and yes, got nothing.

The purpose of the move is also simple, Reggie Jackson has just exercised his 5.25 million player option for next season, and the Nuggets have sent him away to the Hornets in order to save money, for which they have taken three unprotected second-round picks.

Personally, I think that after this operation, the possibility of the Nuggets keeping Pope has greatly increased, but Reggie Jackson averaged 10.2 points per game in the regular season last season, and his departure will inevitably have an impact on the Nuggets bench.

In the worst case, even if Reggie is sent away to save money, the Nuggets still lose Pope, then the Nuggets will directly lose the fifth and sixth scoring points compared to last season, and there is no room for reinforcements, and the competitiveness will decline further.

It's worth mentioning that the Nuggets are actually facing more problems than that, next season, Aaron Gordon will also enter a contract year (Gordon is a player option for the 2025-26 season), he may be more important than Pope, and if Gordon is retained, it will definitely be a headache for Nuggets management.

It can only be said that the Nuggets have encountered the salary troubles that strong teams will encounter, and this summer will be very critical, if it is operated properly, it will still be a championship team next season, and the operation is not improper, look at the current Western pattern, I am afraid that it will be difficult for the Nuggets to even break out of the West again - Jokic is very strong, but basketball is a five-person sport after all, and I hope that the peak will not be wasted.

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