Denver let some players go, sacrificing veteran depth to save money and stay under the second apron of the luxury tax: Bruce Brown, Jeff Green, and most painfully this summer Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. They paid to keep Nikola Jokic and, most recently, Jamal Murray in the Mile High City.
Aaron Gordon must fall into that latter group. He’s eligible now with a player option for the 2025-26 season — if Denver doesn’t extend him, Gordon can be a free agent next summer. He doesn’t want that, he wants to stay in Denver, Gordon said during Nuggets media day.
“I really love this organization. I love the players on this team. I love the coaching staff. So I hope we get it done. It looks like it’s moving in the right direction, so I’m excited. I’m excited. hopefully be extended and stay with this organization.”
Gordon is a steal this season at $22.8 million, he is now eligible to sign a four-year, $149.5 million extension, which seems about a fair price in the current market. Gordon isn’t putting up crazy scoring stats — 13.9 points and 6.5 rebounds a game last season — but he’s a high-level defender who plays a high-IQ game and knows how to match up with Nikola Jokic.
The bottom line: Denver wouldn’t have the championship banner it does without Gordon and won’t get another one without him. Nuggets GM Calvin Booth gets that and it was clear that he wants to extend Gordon.
“Hopefully we have some productive talks with his representation, and we can find a deal that we’re both happy with. He’s been an integral part of what we’ve done. And we’d like to keep him here for a long time.”
The Nuggets need to keep him, and this is not the player to pinch pennies with.
