Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić informed the Denver Nuggets on July 8 that he wouldn’t sign an extension this offseason.
Jokić can make more money next offseason, which is why the Nuggets weren’t shocked or worried by the move.
“No worry at all,” a Nuggets front office executive told NBA reporter Keith Smith of Spotrac. “It’s the smart move from his side, if I’m being honest. He can lock in an extra year next year, which is the way to do it when you are in his position.
“Same offer, plus one more year, will be there for him a year from now. He knows that, and we’re all on the same page.”
Nikola Jokić is widely considered the best player in the NBA. He averaged a triple-double and finished second in MVP voting last season. The Nuggets won 50 games in 2024-25 and beat the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the playoffs before losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the conference semifinals in seven games.
A future Hall of Famer, Jokić averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds and 10.2 assists for Denver last season while shooting 57.6% from the field, 41.7% from beyond the arc and 80.0% from the free-throw line. The big man had 59 double-doubles and 34 triple-doubles,
The Nuggets have been extremely busy this offseason. The front office signed Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr., traded Michael Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson and sent Dario Šarić to the Sacramento Kings for Jonas Valančiūnas.
“We had to get deeper,” a Nuggets front office executive told Smith. “That was clear to us as far back as the trade deadline. We’ll have DaRon (Holmes II) this year, which is going to be huge. But adding Cam (Johnson), Jonas (Valanciunas), Tim (Hardaway Jr.) and bringing Bruce (Brown) home are huge for us. And we still like our younger guys too. The pressure is just off them a bit to have to be great every night.”
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