DaRon Holmes

Nuggets Notes: Murray, Johnson, M. Brown, Holmes

Historically a slow starter who has posted his worst scoring and shooting numbers in October, November, and December, Jamal Murray was optimistic during the preseason about reversing that trend. So far, so good for the Nuggets guard, who has averaged 30.3 points, 6.0 assists, and 5.0 rebounds in his first three games, with a scorching-hot .530/.429/.923 shooting line.

As Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (subscription required) writes, the sample size is still far too small to jump to any conclusions, but if Murray’s hot start continues, he could have a shot to earn the first All-Star nod of his career. Predictably, head coach David Adelman is thinking more about how the point guard’s strong performances so far have impacted winning than whether or not Murray will finally get All-Star recognition.

“How many All-Stars haven’t won championships?” Adelman said. “How many All-Stars don’t have a triple-double in the Finals? … Yeah, he doesn’t go to the glorified pickup game, but the guy is a champion and one of the best players of this generation.”

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  • Starting forward Cameron Johnson was unable to finish Monday’s win over Minnesota due to an injury the Nuggets are referring to as right shoulder inflammation, Durando writes in another story for The Denver Post (subscription required). “He was in pain. His shoulder was hurting him,” Adelman said. “I don’t think it’s extremely serious, but it was bothersome. To his credit, he came back out and tried to play. But that’s why it’s nice to have a guy like Tim (Hardaway Jr.) off your bench.” Johnson is listed as questionable to play on Wednesday vs. New Orleans.
  • The Nuggets carried veteran center Moses Brown on an Exhibit 10 contract for the preseason and made a trade to acquire his G League returning rights, but he wasn’t on the training camp roster announced on Monday by the Grand Rapids Gold, Denver’s affiliate (Twitter link). It’s unclear what the next stop will be for Brown, who has appeared in 163 NBA regular season games since debuting in 2019.
  • The Nuggets officially assigned DaRon Holmes to Grand Rapids on Tuesday, and that figures to be a common occurrence over the course of the season. As Durando writes for The Denver Post (subscription required), on paper, Holmes looks like a strong candidate to be the backup power forward in Denver’s NBA rotation, but the team will proceed extremely cautiously with the 2024 first-round pick after he missed his entire rookie year with an Achilles tear. Holmes is on board with that plan, according to Adelman. “DaRon has been nothing but positive. Great attitude. Good learner. Good in the locker room, not just on the court. Just a great kid overall,” the Nuggets’ coach said. “Can really shoot the ball. And you’ve gotta remember, he’s coming off an Achilles. It’s not like he had a sprained ankle last year. He’s playing basketball again for the first time (since college) in the last four months.”

Nuggets Notes: Gordon, Adelman, Holmes, Malone

The Nuggets became the last of the NBA’s 30 teams to play their regular season opener on Thursday, falling to the Warriors in a 137-131 overtime thriller. It was a huge night for veteran forward Aaron Gordon, who established new career highs by pouring in 50 points and making 10 three-pointers. However, he was disappointed not to come away with a victory in Golden State.

“They’re asking if I wanted the game ball, and no, I don’t want the game ball,” Gordon said, per Nick Friedell of The Athletic. “Take an L home with me? No thank you. So this sucks, but it’s one game, our first game. It’s a good team, it’s a really good team … we’re going to reconvene, watch the film and try to play better in our home opener.”

Nuggets head coach David Adelman said after the game that he felt “awful” for Gordon after his career performance was spoiled by some crunch-time heroics from Stephen Curry, who tied the game with a long-distance three-pointer in regulation, then scored a team-high seven overtime points to seal it. Still, Adelman was very pleased by what he saw from Gordon, who is typically a third or fourth offensive option for Denver.

“I thought he did it in a really efficient, smart way,” the Nuggets’ coach said. “He wasn’t forcing any … AG’s a special player. He has been for us for a long time.”

We have more on the Nuggets:

  • In an in-depth conversation with Sam Amick of The Athletic, Adelman spoke about last season’s second-round playoff loss to Oklahoma City, why he believes Jonas Valanciunas is such an important addition to the roster, and the challenge of putting his own stamp on the team while also honoring a culture and foundation he helped establish as a longtime Nuggets assistant. “Yeah, it’d be stupid not to maintain some things that have been constants, that won us playoff games,” Adelman said. “But it would also be stupid not to realize the league educates itself and people have guarded us differently in the last two years. So doing the same thing over and over is not going to lead to anything successful in June. We have to tweak things.”
  • The Nuggets intend to send 2024 first-round pick DaRon Holmes to the G League throughout this season for developmental purposes, tweets Durando. Holmes missed his entire rookie year due to a torn Achilles and the team doesn’t want to rush him, Durando explains.
  • Former Nuggets head coach Michael Malone, who was let go by the team near the end of last season, has shifted to a broadcast role this season. However, the 54-year-old said during an Inside The NBA appearance on Thursday that he doesn’t believe his coaching career is over (Twitter video link). “I’m definitely not done coaching,” Malone said. “Coaching is in my blood. I got that from my father. I’m excited to get back coaching on those sidelines and teaching once again.”

Nuggets Exercising Options On Strawther, Holmes

The Nuggets are picking up their rookie scale team options for 2026/27 on both Julian Strawther and DaRon Holmes, reports Katy Winge of Altitude Sports (Twitter link).

Strawther, the 29th overall pick in the 2023 draft, emerged as a regular part of Denver’s rotation last season, averaging 9.0 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 21.3 minutes per game across 65 appearances, with a shooting line of .432/.349/.822. The 23-year-old wing was already under contract for roughly $2.67MM this season — now his $4,826,931 salary for next season is locked in as well.

The Nuggets traded up in the 2024 draft to land Holmes with the 22nd overall pick,  but the former Dayton forward missed his entire rookie season after tearing his right Achilles in his Summer League debut. He has made a full recovery from that injury and should be available when Denver’s season tips off on Thursday. After earning about $3.22MM this season, the 23-year-old will make $3,372,120 in 2026/27 on his newly exercised option.

Strawther’s option is for the fourth year of his rookie contract, so he’ll become eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer. The Nuggets will have to make one more decision on Holmes’ rookie deal next fall — his fourth-year option for ’27/28 is worth about $5.55MM.

We’re tracking all of the rookie scale team option decisions for 2026/27 right here.

Nuggets Notes: Two-Big Lineup, Braun, Watson, Murray, Jones, Delk

After being named the Nuggets‘ permanent head coach in the spring, David Adelman has shown during the preseason that he’s willing to experiment with unusual lineup combinations to see what clicks, writes Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette.

One of those lineups has seen centers Nikola Jokic and Jonas Valanciunas share the court. Adelman, who has used the two big men together for just a couple minutes in the second quarter in each of the past two games, admitted prior to Tuesday’s preseason matchup with Chicago that the unit is a work in progress, per Bennett Durando of The Denver Post (subscription required).

“I thought it was hilarious to watch it on tape,” Adelman said. “We haven’t had a ton of time (practicing with) those guys. They’ve scripted together, but they haven’t played together. But it’s kind of like, rip the Band-Aid off and just see what happens.

“… If they end up playing together a lot, we’ll slowly but surely add a package for those two guys,” he continued. “And not just for them, but to make the other three guys comfortable. I’ve made this point about Houston. Offensively, with the two bigs, (Alperen) Sengun was the point person, and (Steven) Adams just crushed the glass. So it’s like, our personalities are a little bit different. Val can crash the glass, but he’s also skilled. So I have to find a way to get those guys comfortable in space so they’re not right on top of each other.”

We have more on the Nuggets:

  • Both eligible for rookie scale extensions until Monday, fourth-year players Christian Braun and Peyton Watson have shown this month that they’re still adding new elements to their games, Durando writes in another story for The Denver Post. Braun has exhibited an increased willingness to take the ball to the basket, while Watson has operated on the ball more frequently this fall than in the past, Durando notes. Braun and Watson will be eligible for restricted free agency in 2026 if they don’t sign new deals before the season begins.
  • Jamal Murray has a history of starting seasons slow, but he looks well positioned to change that narrative this year, Benedetto writes for The Denver Gazette. Murray scored 30 points on 18 shots in Tuesday’s win over Chicago and appears to be “physically and mentally” ready for the season, says Benedetto.
  • Within the same story, Benedetto observes that two-way player Spencer Jones has frequently been used as the 10th man in Denver’s rotation this preseason, ahead of players like Jalen Pickett, Julian Strawther, and DaRon Holmes. The former undrafted rookie out of Stanford, entering his second season on a two-way contract with the Nuggets, has been lauded by Adelman for his defensive versatility.
  • The Nuggets have hired former NBA guard Tony Delk as a scout, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). Delk, who appeared in 545 regular season games for eight teams from 1996-2006, most recently served as a pro personnel scout for the Mavericks.

Nuggets Notes: Bench Squad, Valanciunas, Jokic, Hardaway

Heading into training camp with a set starting lineup, Nuggets coach David Adelman has been able to focus on figuring out his bench rotation, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr., Julian Strawther, Peyton Watson and Jonas Valanciunas have been the main group scrimmaging against the starters, but Adelman said “that second unit will fluctuate” as he rotates in other players.

Brown, a reserve on Denver’s 2023 title team who returned as a free agent this summer, likes the way that group fits together. “I think we can do everything,” he said. “We’ve got shooters. We’ve got defenders.”

Durando notes that the current fivesome is heavy on wings, so Jalen Pickett, DaRon Holmes II, Zeke Nnaji or Hunter Tyson may be added to the mix. Cameron Johnson told Durando that Pickett has been outstanding in camp at running the second and third units.

There’s more on the Nuggets:

  • Valanciunas, who was acquired in an offseason trade with Sacramento, has been orchestrating the offense for the second team much like Nikola Jokic does with the starters, Durando adds in the same story. Durando suggests that Adelman could decide to surround Valanciunas with four smaller players in a motion-based offense. “This has been good for him to get used to our system a little bit,” Adelman said. “He hasn’t done some of this stuff outside of a couple months in Sacramento, playing off the elbow and the top of the key. … So I have to do him a service. We’ve gotta get to some post-up plays and things that he’s used to.”
  • Jokic will have the freedom to determine how far he wants to venture away from the rim on defense, Durando states in a separate story. Adelman trusts his veteran center to recognize what level of drop coverage is appropriate based on the opponent. “There’s so many levels of drops,” Adelman said. “He won’t be just at the rim like he’s (Rudy) Gobert. But it’s just looking for maybe a little more of (him defending) down the floor, a couple steps down the floor. And more so, I think what we’re trying to create with him — he’s so high-IQ — is the Marc Gasol model, where he’s choosing his levels depending on the quality of player or what the player does well. We all know his IQ is so high, but we have to work on that and allow him to work on it in practice.”
  • Hardway said the team’s style of play led him to join the Nuggets in free agency, relays Jared Koch of Sports Illustrated. “Everybody’s moving without the ball nonstop, basically sharing the wealth,” he said. “All you’ve got to do is just make the right play time after time after time again, and great things will happen.”

Nuggets Notes: Valanciunas, Adelman, Rotation, Holmes, Wallace

While the Nuggets have made it clear they expect Jonas Valanciunas to honor his contract, which will pay him $10.4MM next season, they also recognize they will need to make a concerted effort to help the Lithuanian center feel “comfortable and content” with the idea of spending (at least) the next year with the team, according to Bennett Durando of The Denver Post.

Valanciunas was reportedly interested in signing a three-year deal with Greek club Panathinaikos this summer but he still has one guaranteed year left on his NBA contract. Denver went through with its trade for Valanciunas and intends to have him on the roster this fall, though it remains to be seen how the 33-year-old feels about that idea, since his public comments haven’t revealed much to this point, Durando notes.

Head coach David Adelman said during a Summer League broadcast that he viewed Valanciunas as a “point center” of sorts. In an interview with Durando, he clarified what he meant.

He’s a bona fide, big-time center over the last decade who you can put in a bunch of different spots all over the floor,” Adelman told The Post. “And when I say ‘point center,’ I mean someone you can play through in the half-court. I don’t envision him getting a rebound and pushing the ball up. I do think some of the things we already do (work with him): playing five-out with back-side dribble hand-offs, playing off the elbows, posting him up against smaller lineups, his ability to make others better.

It’s not the assist numbers that matter to me. It’s his ability to start ball movement through the impact of who he is. So he’s an enormous get. I’m super excited about getting him here, getting him acclimated.”

Here’s more on the Nuggets:

  • From his comments, it seems clear that Adelman envisions Valanciunas having a significant role off the bench. But Adelman told Durando that free agent additions Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. will have to earn whatever minutes they receive next season. “Those guys have to compete for spots. That’s new guys included. They all know that,” the coach said. “We’re very excited about some of the things those guys have done through their careers. We expect them to come to compete like they’ve done, and there’s a reason they’ve all played in rotations across the league. But this is going to be an open competition. I hope our young guys understand that. … And all those guys will complement Jonas. It’s gonna be the guys who earn these spots that get to play with him.”
  • Second-year big man DaRon Holmes is back in action at Summer League a year after suffering a torn Achilles tendon, which sidelined him for his entire rookie season. Holmes recognizes it’s going to take him some time to adjust to playing five-on-five again, Durando writes in another story for The Denver Post. “I always see people that are like, ‘Hey, this guy didn’t play well! This guy didn’t!’ It’s Summer League,” Holmes said. “Not even just for me; for all the other athletes out here playing. A lot of the rooks. They’re getting used to it. So it just takes some time. It’s like when you’re first playing when you’re a freshman going into college. That’s how it feels.”
  • Vinny Benedetto of The Denver Gazette details how Nuggets executive vice president of player personnel Jon Wallace made a habit of proving people wrong during his time at Georgetown. Wallace’s former college coach thinks he’s well suited for his new job. “Jon Wallace is a hoop head, who, oh, by the way, is also extremely intelligent, who, oh, by the way, is a connector and understands the dynamics of putting a unit together,” John Thompson III told Benedetto. “He’ll be able to take the owner’s vision and be able to execute that. I think he will do many aspects of the job at a very high level.”

Nuggets Notes: Jokic, Valanciunas, Holmes, Jones

Nuggets star Nikola Jokic doesn’t plan to agree to an extension this summer, but there are “no signs” he’s considering leaving Denver, Sam Amick of The Athletic stated during a recent appearance on Sactown Sports 1140 (YouTube link). However, Amick warns that things can always change, saying the organization shouldn’t feel too comfortable about Jokic until the new contract is official.

“It guarantees now that Joker has another decision to make next summer,” Amick said. “You can’t tell me, if this next coming season is a train wreck for the Nuggets, that that won’t be an issue. Now yes, he can sign a four-year extension if he waits, more money, it lines up potentially better with his next extension when he’s older so there’s plenty of plausible deniability for why he did it, but they also are coming off a year where they fired their coach and the GM, and yes, they got to the second round, but those guys try to win championships.”

Amick praised Denver’s new front office, saying they’re “off to a really strong start,” but added that Nuggets fans would be more comfortable if Jokic had taken the extension now. The three-time MVP will reportedly hold off extension plans until 2026, when he’ll be eligible for a four-year deal worth a projected $285.4MM instead of the three years at $206.4MM that’s currently on the table.

There’s more on the Nuggets:

  • Denver can’t afford to let Jonas Valanciunas out of his contract to play in Europe due to a lack of other options on the free agent market, Marc Stein of The Stein Line told Adam Mares of DNVR Sports (Twitter video link). “The other 29 teams are operating under the strong belief that Al Horford will end up going to Golden State,” Stein said. “… (The Nuggets) don’t have someone to pivot to. They don’t have a shot at Horford.”
  • DaRon Holmes made steady progress after tearing his right Achilles tendon during last year’s Summer League, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. The rookie big man was able to resume running and pregame shooting workouts by December, taking at least 200 three-pointers per day unless trainers advised him to rest. After conducting the operation, Holmes’ surgeon said he might be able to return by March, but the team never moved away from its plan for him to sit out the entire season. “I was met by a sense of determination and optimism on his part,” said his business manager Mitch Brown. “It really struck me that his mentality as a 22-year-old kid was so strong, dealing with something like this.”
  • Spencer Jones, the only two-way player that Denver kept from last year’s roster, continues to impress at Summer League, Durando adds in a separate story. The 24-year-old small forward had 19 points, six rebounds and two steals in Saturday’s loss to Minnesota.

Nuggets Notes: Holmes, Tyson, Valanciunas, MPJ

After suffering a torn right Achilles tendon during last year’s Summer League, Nuggets big man DaRon Holmes is returning to Las Vegas to restart his NBA career, writes Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. The organization had huge expectations for Holmes after trading up to take him with the 22nd pick in the 2024 draft, but the injury forced him to sit out his entire first season. He has fully recovered and won’t be on any limitations for Denver’s first game Thursday evening.

“It can be pretty difficult, because you have to trust what the trainers are saying (while recovering),” Holmes said. “So if they’re like, ‘Hey, we don’t want you coming back in the gym tonight — rest your legs, rest your Achilles,’ I might try to fight back and say no, I want to get shots up. But I have to listen to what they have to say. They went to school for eight-plus years doing that. I grew up playing basketball. So that’s the fight. It’s more of a mental thing. But I listen to what they have to say. And I trust my form. I’ve been still getting up shots, but I listen if they say (to rest).”

Holmes considers himself to be a natural power forward, but he’ll likely see some time at center this summer. He’s a little short for the position at 6’9″, so Durando expects him to compete for backup minutes during the season at the four spot with Zeke Nnaji and Peyton Watson.

“Anywhere they put me, I’ll be comfortable playing,” Holmes added. “I spent a lot of summer time playing the five. … I trust what the coaches have. I trust this team, the organization.”

There’s more on the Nuggets:

  • Hunter Tyson will return to Summer League for a third season, Durando states in a separate story. The former second-round pick was the only player on Denver’s standard roster who averaged fewer than 10 minutes per game last season, so he signed up for another summer in Las Vegas to sharpen his skills. “Trying to use this opportunity to get better,” Tyson said. “Make the most of it every time I step on the floor. … Going to go out there and try and win, try and work on my game, try and get better. Use the game reps to continue to grow my game.”
  • The Nuggets’ trade with Sacramento for Jonas Valanciunas remains on track to be finalized this week, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link), but the team hasn’t agreed to guarantee his $10MM salary for 2026/27. Valanciunas will make $10.395MM during the upcoming season and has been hoping to return to Europe to play for Panathinaikos. On Tuesday, during his first public comments since news of the trade broke, Valanciunas sounded ready to report to the Nuggets. “Once the trade is finalized, we’ll put together the plan for the trip to Denver,” he said, per Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews. “The team will outline how they see the situation, medicals, and all the details. That part is up to them.”
  • Michael Porter Jr. released a YouTube video thanking Nuggets fans for their support and discussing his trade to Brooklyn. Porter said he enjoyed his time with the organization, especially the 2023 championship, but added that his “ceiling in Denver kind of plateaued.”

Northwest Notes: Holmes, Alexander-Walker, Hansen, Johnson

While much of the offseason discussion about the Nuggets‘ big man situation revolved around Jonas Valanciunas and whether he’ll stay with the team after he’s officially traded from Sacramento to Denver, the club is also set to receive some frontcourt health in the return of DaRon Holmes II, the 22nd pick in the 2024 draft.

Holmes missed the entirety of his rookie year after rupturing his Achilles in his 2024 Summer League debut, but he’s now healed and ready to make an imprint on the Nuggets’ roster.

I think being in the weight room, adding some muscle to my game, and just learning our system, learning our plays, I’m feeling more confident knowing what I need to do now,” he said to Katy Winge of Altitude TV (Twitter video link). “And my passing game, I think, has gotten a lot better.”

Holmes also spoke about his ability to slide between frontcourt positions as needed.

Anywhere they put me, I’ll be comfortable playing,” he said. “I spent a lot of the summertime playing the five, now I’m going to get back to playing the four. So I think I’ll be playing both... I trust the coaching staff, I trust this team, organization, so I’m excited to get out there.”

After adding Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr., who will join incumbents like Peyton Watson and Julian Strawther, the Nuggets’ bench is taking shape, but there is still room for Holmes to carve out a role for himself.

We have more news from the Northwest division:

  • Nickeil Alexander-Walker was a true success story for the Timberwolves, writes The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski. Included as a throw-in from the Mike Conley trade, Alexander-Walker quickly righted the ship of his career, which was veering into rocky journeyman territory, and became a fan favorite and defensive stalwart for the back-to-back Western Conference finalists. While Alexander-Walker is headed to the Hawks, his fourth team in seven seasons, Krawczynski writes that he’s doing so in a very different light, as one of the Wolves’ greatest development stories, and a truly introspective, thoughtful basketball player who will be missed in the Twin Cities.
  • Yang Hansen is facing probably the steepest learning curve of anyone from the 2025 draft, but the Trail Blazers‘ big man out of China has hit the ground running in the practices ahead of his first Summer League, writes Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report (Substack link). “He was impressive, but there are also things he’s going to learn really quickly,” said Blazers Summer League head coach Ronnie Burrell. “He’s expected to have some struggles and also have some success. But he looked good today.” Burrell has been most impressed with Hansen’s ability to navigate the culture shock. “This is all new to him, the language, the culture. And he handles it amazingly,” Burrell said, as reported by Aaron Fentress of Oregon Live. “The kid has maturity, and he’s got character, and he’s picking up things fast.”
  • After being traded from the Nets to the Nuggets, Cam Johnson is ready to do what he always has done best: work. Bennett Durando of the Denver Post writes that beyond his lethal three-point shooting and cerebral approach to the game, it’s the diligence that stands out as Johnson’s superpower. “The reason he’s in the NBA is because the guy works,” his high school coach Mike Rodriguez said. “Not because of his size. Not because of his shooting. I mean, that man works.” While the work got him to where he is, it’s his instincts and mind for the game that make him such a tantalizing fit in Denver. “We weren’t really a set-heavy team, so we liked to play fast and run secondary break,” UNC assistant coach Brad Frederick said. “A lot of what he got in terms of open shots was just because he was able to kind of create his own looks and because he was able to run the floor so well. We could pitch it ahead to him for shots.” That ability to read the game should make him a perfect fit next to Nikola Jokic.

Nuggets Notes: Kroenke, Jokic, Tenzer, Wallace, Holmes

Nuggets vice chairman Josh Kroenke said that Nikola Jokic will receive a contract extension offer this offseason, The Denver Post’s Bennett Durando tweets, though the superstar center could receive an even bigger deal by waiting another year.

“We’re definitely gonna offer it,” Kroenke said during a Tuesday press conference. “I’m not sure if he’s gonna accept it or not because we’re also gonna explain every financial parameter around him, signing now versus signing later.”

Jokic’s contract runs through 2026/27, with a player option for ’27/28. Jokic will become extension-eligible on July 8 and could sign for approximately $212MM at that time on a three-year extension that replaces his option — or he could wait until July 2026 and sign for four years and $293MM.

Here’s more from Kroenke’s presser, via Durando:

  • Kroenke made an ominous, perhaps inadvertent statement, regarding the Collective Bargaining Agreement and its implications. While discussing the second tax apron, Kroenke brought up a doomsday scenario in which Jokic could be traded. “There are rules around it that we needed to be very careful of with our injury history,” he said (Twitter link). “Wrong person gets injured, and very quickly you’re into a scenario that I never want to have to contemplate, and that’s trading No. 15 (Jokic).”
  • Regarding front office responsibilities, Kroenke indicated that Ben Tenzer, the new executive vice president of basketball operations, and former Timberwolves executive Jon Wallace, who was named executive vice president of player personnel, will share duties involving trades, free agents signings and contract negotiations. Kroenke will take a more hands-on role in the short run as the duo settles into their positions, then ease back and just check in with them every few days or on a weekly basis. (Twitter links)
  • According to Vinny Benedetto of the Denver Gazette (Twitter link), Tenzer said that forward/center DaRon Holmes II would participate in Summer League play. Holmes tore his Achilles in his Summer League debut last July after the Nuggets traded up to snag him with the No. 22 pick.