NBA insider breaks down closing of Nuggets' championship window: "Run out of time with cheaper contracts
The Denver Nuggets' championship window could be closing with the rise of teams like the OKC Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference. A key factor is that Denver's core of Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon is becoming one of the more expensive cores in the entire NBA.
Jokic is set to have a cap hit of $51.4 million in 2024-25, and Murray's cap hit will be roughly $36 million with the signing of his four-year, $207 million deal. Gordon is also set to receive a contract extension in the coming weeks.
On the "NBA Today" on Thursday, ESPN's Brian Windhorst touched on how Denver's top-end contracts could play a crucial role in its championship window.
Denver won the 2023 NBA Finals before reaching the Western semifinals last season, and Jokic has been the MVP in three of the last four seasons.
"They have reached the maturation point of a champion," Windhorst said. "I believe in six or seven years, we have not seen a repeat champion, and one of the seasons is paying everybody, and deciding who you're going to pay is difficult. That's what the Nuggets have run into, they have run out of time with cheaper contracts, and the pressure has arrived."
Windhorst also said that Denver made a costly decision not to extend Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who played a crucial role in the Nuggets' championship run in 20223. Instead, the Nuggets built around Jokic, Murray and Gordon with players on cheaper contracts.
Jamal Murray signs max contract extension to stay with Nuggets
Last week, the Denver Nuggets extended Jamal Murray on a four-year, $207.8 million deal, keeping him in Denver through the 2028-29 NBA season.
Windhorst noted Murray's struggles during the NBA playoffs and the 2024 Paris Olympics for the Canadian National Team. In Denver's first two playoff matchups last season, Murray shot just over 40% while dealing with a calf injury. He also struggled from beyond the arc, shooting 31% from 3-point range.
While he struggled during the playoffs last season, Murray was a no-brainer signing for the Nuggets, serving as one-third of Denver's championship-caliber core.
Entering the 2024-25 season healthy, Jamal Murray should look more like himself as the Nuggets pursue their second NBA championship in three years.