While most of the talk around the Denver Nuggets this summer has centered on Peyton Watson’s restricted free agency, there’s another key player at his position going through the same situation: Spencer Jones.
The 6-foot-7 forward signed a two-year two-way contract as an undrafted player out of Stanford. After 20 games of mostly garbage minutes in the NBA his rookie season, Jones entered last year with a specific mentality of bringing an edge. It worked. He became a regular rotation player for David Adelman, with an elevated role of starting 37 games while Denver dealt with injuries to Watson and Aaron Gordon and desperately looked for defense.
Jones was so solid that the Nuggets needed to play him more than the 50 games his contract type stipulated and wanted him eligible for the postseason. Denver worked on negotiating a full-time deal with Jones so that could happen but it didn’t work out, leaving the Nuggets to forcibly convert him to a standard contract, which means he’s now a restricted free agent.
“I think Spencer’s done himself a lot of good, a lot of favors this past year specifically how he stepped in and how he defended, made shots. He was just a big part of what we did,” co-GM Jonathan Wallace said Wednesday night after the NBA Draft. “We feel confident. He’s a homegrown guy. You want to reward those guys with them sticking to the plan and really developing themselves. We feel confident where we are with him.”
Across 64 games where Jones played 22 minutes a night, he averaged 5.5 points and 3.3 rebounds a game while bringing a defensive edge the team lacked while shooting near 40% from deep. Jones played in all six playoff games, too, starting three of them due to Gordon’s continued injuries. His 20-point performance in the elimination saving Game 5 was essential.
For the undrafted Jones, a multi-year contract would be a big deal. For the Nuggets, he’s prove to be a key player for the team and he’s a solid security blanket for Adelman in a forward room that has major health concerns.
