Denver Nuggets Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Nuggets Sign Russell Westbrook To Two-Year Deal

July 26th, 2024 at 10:11pm CST by Luke Adams

10:11pm: The Nuggets have officially signed Westbrook, according to a team press release.

1:05pm: The Nuggets will sign veteran point guard Russell Westbrook to a two-year contract, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Denver has long been the expected landing spot for the former MVP, but the details of Westbrook’s new deal hadn’t been reported until now. The 35-year-old earn the minimum salary of $3,303,771 in 2024/25, with a minimum-salary player option worth $3,468,960 for ’25/26. He could become a free agent again in a year if he declines that option.

After joining the Clippers on the buyout market in February 2023, Westbrook spent his first full season with the team in ’23/24, shifting to a bench role following the November acquisition of James Harden. In 68 appearances, the nine-time All-Star averaged 11.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in a career-low 22.5 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .454/.273/.688.

Although Westbrook exercised his $4MM+ player option for 2024/25, his camp and the Clippers quickly began working to find a new home for the former UCLA star. The Nuggets, whose star center Nikola Jokic endorsed the pursuit of Westbrook, were immediately identified as the frontrunner but weren’t in a great position to acquire the guard via trade.

Instead, Westbrook was sent to Utah as part of a deal sending Kris Dunn to the Clippers via sign-and-trade. He subsequently agreed to a buyout with the Jazz, clearing the way for him to sign with Denver as a free agent.

Westbrook is on track to serve as Jamal Murray‘s primary backup at the point and will play a significant role next season for a Nuggets team that struggled to find reliable depth outside of its starting five in the playoffs this past spring.

Olympic Notes: Top Medal Contenders, Jovic, Murray, Nembhard

July 26th, 2024 at 8:40am CST by Luke Adams

The men’s basketball event at this summer’s Paris Olympics has a good chance to be the most competitive international men’s tournament of all-time, contends Brian Windhorst of ESPN. As Windhorst writes, just making the 12-team field is an accomplishment in itself, given that plenty of worthy clubs didn’t make the cut, such as Luka Doncic and the Slovenians, who reached the semifinals at the last Olympics in Tokoyo.

While Team USA will enter the event as the significant favorite to win gold, the Americans will face stiff competition from Canadian and Australian squads heavy on NBA talent, Serbian and Greek teams headed up by superstars (Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo) with multiple MVP awards under their belts, a German club coming off World Cup gold in 2023, and a host team (France) anchored by the NBA’s top two finishers in Defensive Player of the Year voting (Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama), Windhorst writes.

Windhorst identifies USA vs. Serbia on Sunday as the biggest pool-play game to watch this weekend, and singles out a pair of crucial Group A showdowns – Spain vs. Greece and Canada vs. Australia – to watch on Tuesday.

Here’s more on the Olympic men’s basketball tournament, which tips off on Saturday:

Nikola Jovic‘s availability for the Olympics appeared to be up in the air in recent weeks due to a foot/ankle injury, but the Heat forward was included on Serbia’s 12-man roster and expects to play off the bench on Sunday in the team’s pool-play opener vs. Team USA, tweets Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press. “I really feel good now,” Jovic said. “Life is great. I may not be in the best shape, but I’ll be ready for the game.”
As noted earlier this week, Jamal Murray hasn’t seen much action during Team Canada’s pre-Olympic tune-ups, raising questions about how ready the Nuggets guard will be when the Canadians’ Olympic schedule tips off on Saturday. However, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca (Twitter link), word from the team’s scrimmage vs. Brazil on Wednesday was that Murray’s minutes got “into the teens” and he looked “great.”
In a feature for Sportsnet.ca, Grange takes a closer look at Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, a rising star on the Canadian national team who just agreed to a three-year extension with Indiana. The 24-year-old wasn’t on the roster for last year’s World Cup, but is expected to play a significant role in Paris. “He plays with the highest of IQs, he’s probably one of my favorite players in the NBA right now, he’s just very underrated,” Murray said of Nembhard. “He’s very good defensively, he’s very deceptive on both ends of the court. He plays the passing lanes and he’s physical for his size … And he can lead a unit better than people give him credit for. I’m excited to play alongside him.”
In case you missed it, we have the full 12-man rosters for each team participating in the Olympic men’s basketball tournament right here. The list of 144 players includes 82 who are currently on NBA rosters or have previous NBA regular season experience.

Nuggets To Start Preseason In Abu Dhabi

July 24th, 2024 at 9:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Nuggets will open their preseason schedule with a pair of games against the Celtics Oct. 4 and 6 in Abu Dhabi, tweets Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports. Denver will host the Suns Oct. 13 and the Thunder Oct. 15 before traveling to face the Timberwolves Oct 18.

DeAndre Jordan Re-Signs With Nuggets

July 24th, 2024 at 5:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 24: Jordan’s new contract is official, the Nuggets announced in a press release.

JUNE 29: Free agent center DeAndre Jordan plans to remain with the Nuggets on a one-year, $3.6MM deal, sources tell Chris Haynes of TNT and Bleacher Report (Twitter link).

Jordan, 35, will be committing to a third season with the Nuggets after signing as a free agent in 2022, just in time for the team’s championship run. His on-court presence has diminished from his peak years, but he’s still a strong locker room presence who can provide rim protection and a lob threat when needed.

Jordan appeared in 36 games this season, making two starts and averaging 3.9 points and 4.4 rebounds in 11 minutes per night. Operating exclusively near the basket, his shooting percentage remains high at 62.4%.

A second-round draft pick by the Clippers in 2008, Jordan had his best years in L.A., earning one All-Star appearance and becoming a central part of the “Lob City” teams. He had brief stays with the Mavericks, Knicks, Nets, Lakers and Sixers before coming to Denver.

The veteran’s minimum salary for a player with 10 or more years of experience is projected to be worth a little over $3.3MM, so it will be interesting to see whether Jordan’s new deal is actually worth $3.6MM or if it will come in as a minimum deal. Denver’s proximity to the luxury tax line and the aprons makes every dollar important, and a minimum salary would only count as $2.1MM for salary cap and tax purposes.

The agreement with Jordan takes care of one Nuggets question mark before the start of free agency on Sunday evening. The team’s priority is re-signing shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who declined his player option on Thursday. Vlatko Cancar and Justin Holiday are also unrestricted free agents.

Serbia, Greece Set 12-Man Rosters For Olympics

July 23rd, 2024 at 9:10am CST by Luke Adams

Two more nations have set their 12-man rosters for the upcoming Olympic games in Paris, with Serbia and Greece both officially announcing their squads (Twitter links).

The Serbian roster is headlined by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic and includes a few more NBA players beyond the Nuggets center. Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic, Hornets guard Vasilije Micic, and Heat forward Nikola Jovic will also represent Serbia in Paris.

Jovic’s inclusion is particularly notable, since there was some uncertainty earlier this month about whether he’d be healthy enough to play. He injured his ankle during an offseason workout in Miami in June, but has apparently received medical clearance for the Olympics.

Nikola Milutinov, Ognjen Dobric, Vanja Marinkovic, Marko Guduric, Filip Petrusev, Aleksa Avramovic, Dejan Davidovac, and Uros Plavsic round out Serbia’s roster. Former NBA first-round pick Aleksej Pokusevski, who finished last season with the Hornets, isn’t among the final 12.

Meanwhile, Greece has also confirmed its Olympic roster, which will be led by another former NBA MVP, Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Giannis is the only Antetokounmpo suiting up for Greece in France at this year’s event, since his brothers Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Kostas Antetokounmpo are both dealing with injuries.

While Giannis is the only active NBA player on the Greek roster, a few others have previously played in the league, including Nick Calathes, Georgios Papagiannis, and Kostas Papanikolaou. Former Stephen F. Austin standout Thomas Walkup also signed an NBA contract back in 2016, though he never appeared in a regular season game.

Dinos Mitoglou, Giannoulis Larentzakis, Vassilis Charalampopoulos, Nikos Chougkaz, Dimitris Moraitis, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, and Vassilis Toliopoulos make up the rest of Greece’s roster.

Serbia’s first pool-play game of the Olympics will take place on Sunday vs. Team USA, while Greece’s Olympic schedule will tip off a day earlier, with a Saturday showdown vs. Canada.

Russell Westbrook Gave Up $1.7MM In Buyout Agreement With Jazz

July 23rd, 2024 at 7:01am CST by Luke Adams

As part of a buyout agreement with the Jazz, veteran guard Russell Westbrook gave up exactly $1.7MM, according to Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link). Utah waived Westbrook on Saturday.

The buyout reduces Westbrook’s cap hit on Utah’s books from $4,027,525 to $2,327,525, giving the team a little extra salary cap flexibility. No team currently has more cap space than the Jazz, who still have about $33MM in available room.

The Jazz also reportedly received $4.3MM in cash from the Clippers in their trade for Westbrook, so despite being on the hook for about $2.33MM of the guard’s salary, they’ll come out nearly $2MM ahead from a financial perspective.

Westbrook will also come out ahead, since he’s reportedly on track to sign a minimum-salary contract with the Nuggets. That deal with Denver will pay him $3,303,771, increasing his total earnings for the 2024/25 season to $5,631,296, exceeding what he would have made if he had remained on his original $4.03MM contract.

As for the Clippers, they presumably could’ve reached a similar buyout agreement with Westbrook, but trading him to Utah allowed them to give Kris Dunn a more lucrative contract than they otherwise would’ve been able to. Using Westbrook’s $4MM+ outgoing salary for matching purposes, L.A. acquired Dunn via sign-and-trade, giving him a starting salary of $5,168,000 on his new three-year deal.

Westbrook is on track to serve as Jamal Murray‘s primary backup and play a significant role in Denver this season. Nikola Jokic reportedly advocated for the addition of the former MVP.

Column: Don't Start Westbrook

July 22nd, 2024 at 8:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Nuggets shouldn’t put Russell Westbrook in the starting lineup to fill Kentavious Caldwell-Pope‘s spot, Sean Keeler of the Denver Post opines. Westbrook is joining Denver after clearing waivers on Monday. Westbrook would be better off anchoring a mostly youthful second unit, providing leadership and a change of pace. He’d be a better backup at the point than Reggie Jackson – who was dealt to Charlotte – was last season, Keeler adds. Westbrook would still get chances to start if and when Murray is unavailable.

Jazz Waive Russell Westbrook

July 20th, 2024 at 6:26pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Jazz have officially waived Russell Westbrook, the team announced in a press release. The 35-year-old point guard, who was acquired from the Clippers on Thursday, is expected to join the Nuggets after clearing waivers on Monday.

Westbrook was sent to Utah as part of a sign-and-trade involving free agent guard Kris Dunn, who reached an agreement with L.A. shortly after the start of free agency. The Jazz received a second-r0und pick swap and cash in the deal, which gave the Clippers the ability to remove Westbrook’s salary from their books while offering Dunn a higher salary than they otherwise could’ve.

This is the second time in 17 months that Westbrook has been traded to Utah and then released without playing a game. The Jazz also picked him up from the Lakers in a February 2023 deal before negotiating a buyout that enabled him to join the Clippers.

It’s not clear yet if there was a buyout involved this time or if Utah agreed to pay Westbrook his entire $4MM contract for the upcoming season. He’ll earn about $3.3MM with Denver, which is limited to offering him a veteran’s minimum contract due to apron restrictions.

Westbrook could have tested the free agent market this summer, but he opted to exercise his option and remain in L.A. The Clippers immediately began working with him to find a trade, and the Nuggets, who need a backup point guard after sending Reggie Jackson to Charlotte, quickly emerged as the most likely destination. Adding Westbrook as a free agent simplifies things for Denver, which doesn’t have to worry about matching salaries in a trade.

Westbrook, a nine-time All-Star and former MVP, settled into a bench role in his first full season with the Clippers. He appeared in 68 games and averaged 11.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.1 steals on .454/.273/.688 shooting in 22.5 minutes per night.

Nuggets To Sign Spencer Jones To Two-Way Deal

July 19th, 2024 at 7:16pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nuggets will fill their open two-way contract slot by signing undrafted rookie free agent Spencer Jones to a two-way deal, reports Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (Twitter link).

A 6’7″ forward, Jones spent all five of his college seasons at Stanford from 2019-24, starting 139 of his 146 games during that time. As a super-senior last season, he averaged 11.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.4 steals in 29.1 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .438/.409/.645.

Jones was a 39.7% three-point shooter on 5.4 attempts per contest across his five seasons with the Cardinal, setting a school record with 315 career made three-pointers. Denver likes his combination of size, skill, and shooting, according to Durando.

Jones was on the Trail Blazers’ Summer League roster in Las Vegas. He came off the bench in Portland’s first game last Saturday, but was ruled out for Monday’s contest due to an illness and hasn’t played since.

Denver filled its other two-way slots earlier this month by signing two other undrafted rookies, Trey Alexander and PJ Hall. Once they complete their reported signings of Jones, Russell Westbrook, and DeAndre Jordan, the Nuggets will have 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts and three on two-way deals, so they’ll essentially be set for the regular season.

A player who spends the entire 2024/25 season on a two-way deal will be eligible to appear in up to 50 NBA regular season games and will earn a salary of $578,577.

Olympic Notes: Durant, Team USA, Jokic, Murray

July 19th, 2024 at 3:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Suns star Kevin Durant, who is recovering from a strained calf, participated in Team USA’s practice in London on Friday, per Shams Charania and Joe Vardon of The Athletic. It was the first time Durant has practiced with the team ahead of the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

The United States will face South Sudan on Saturday and Germany on Monday in its last pre-Olympic tune-up games. Durant is day-to-day and is considered questionable to play in those contests.

“I’m going to see how I feel after practice today,” Durant said.

Here are some more notes ahead of the Olympics, which begin next week:

Team USA has gone 3-0 in exhibition contests vs. Canada, Australia and Serbia thus far. While the Americans’ roster is brimming with talent and skill, and their record is unblemished in unofficial games, not everything has been clicking so far, particularly the awkward fit of Joel Embiid, according to Michael Pina of The Ringer. Embiid is used to being the center of his team’s offense, but he has looked out of sorts playing under a different set of rules and with a reduced role, Pina observes. On the other hand, the team’s defense — led by Anthony Davis and Bam Adebayo — has been extremely impressive ahead of the Olympics, says Pina.
Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic undoubtedly raises the ceiling of the Serbian national team, but participating in international events for his home country also comes with increased scrutiny, as Bennett Durando of The Denver Post writes. “It’s a big burden, because it’s kind of like, he’s the best basketball player in the world,” said Nuggets assistant Ognjen Stojakovic, who has coached for Serbia since last summer. “People identify themselves with athletes and sports. They all have high expectations, especially for the national team. … There’s so much pressure on Nikola to play. And not just Nikola, for every athlete to play in all those big competitions.” Serbia is in Group C, alongside the U.S., South Sudan and Puerto Rico.
Nuggets guard Jamal Murray was held out of Canada’s exhibition game vs. France on Friday, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. The Canadian national team said Murray was rested for precautionary reasons. The 27-year-old battled a left calf strain and a right elbow injury during the playoffs, but Denver was eliminated from contention more than two months ago.
In case you missed it, Suns forward/center Bol Bol will miss the Olympics for South Sudan due to personal reasons.