The 2025-26 season was supposed to be a watershed moment of sorts for the Denver Nuggets, as they added some new pieces to their core four of Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, and Christian Braun, and this new depth was going to make them unbeatable, especially in the postseason.
However, this campaign has been particularly unforgiving for the Nuggets on the injury front, with players like Jokic, Gordon, Braun, new addition Cam Johnson and now breakout star Peyton Watson missing significant time with significant innings. Of course, the goal for the Nuggets is simply to complete the rigors of the regular season together, and given their situation at present, even that is not certain.
Whatever the case, the Nuggets have called on some unlikely contributors to step up, and credit to them. But the Nuggets front office knows time is ticking. Their salary cap obligations are about to increase significantly, as Watson is set for a new big contract. To retain Watson, the Nuggets will have to dive into the luxury tax if they choose to keep their current roster together for the next few seasons.
This prompted them to pull off a salary dump trade before the deadline, sending former second-round pick Hunter Tyson along with a 2032 second-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets just to avoid the luxury tax. They were $1.8 million under the luxury tax before the move was made to comply with the 14-roster size requirement following the Tyson trade.
Spencer Jones' Nuggets future is secure...for now
In an ideal world, the Nuggets would have unlimited resources, and they could put their core together without being overly cautious of the punitive nature of the luxury tax under the current CBA. Alas, the Nuggets are not living in an ideal world.
Paying luxury tax is not really a problem when a person is careless. Of course, this plays a factor, as owners are at least very adamant about not wasting money, but the roster move restrictions that come with being in the first or even second apron make roster construction much more difficult.
The Nuggets wanted to get into the tax bracket to reset their timer for at least this season, because their hand will be forced very soon. Nonetheless, they finalized the facilitated transaction of converting Spencer Jones' contract to a standard contract, making him eligible for the postseason.
Jones is one of the players the Nuggets have relied on to help their injured starters. In fact, the 24-year-old sophomore has made 34 starts for the Nuggets this season, which is nothing short of a huge developmental win for a team that needs some cost-effective but productive players to fill out the roster.
Jones plays unselfishly and he shoots efficiently, and considering how important he has been this season, it was no easy task for the Nuggets to turn his deal into a standard one. His impact doesn’t go beyond the stat sheet, but as a 6’7″ wing who can shoot and defend at multiple positions, he is invaluable to a team with contending aspirations.
However, the problem is that the Nuggets were able to convert his contract to a prorated minimum deal for the remainder of the season instead of signing him to a multi-year contract, which would keep him in the Mile High City on an affordable arrangement for the next few seasons.
With this agreement, Jones will be eligible for restricted free agency this summer, and if he makes seven more starts for the Nuggets, he will be eligible for a qualifying offer of $5.9 million – further reducing the Nuggets flexibility amid their current troubles clearing the salary cap.
At least, the Nuggets now have Johnson and Braun healthy, and they've been riding the hot hand of Julian Strother lately, reducing their need to rely on Jones to fill in as the starter. It was going to be difficult for the Nuggets to keep Jones out of the starting lineup as his situation has not improved on the injury front, but now, they have a legitimate reason to bring him off the bench.
But it seems that the hard part is just beginning for the Nuggets.
Denver's bill is coming due
The Nuggets were absolutely impressed by Braun's 2024-25 campaign, as he made the move after Kentavious Caldwell-Pope left in free agency. Braun signed a five-year, $125 million contract extension – a significant commitment for the Nuggets knowing their cap obligations at the time.
Braun has struggled this season with 36 missed games, a huge decline from last season. And the Nuggets have since seen Watson take the next step in his development, blossoming into a legitimate shot creator on the wing and a far more well-rounded two-way threat than Braun.
Watson is set to enter restricted free agency in the summer, and the Nuggets will have to pay more than $20 million per season to retain Watson. Denver has some tough decisions to make moving forward, and that's without considering what it would take to keep Jones on a long-term contract.
Cutting Zeke Nnaji's salary is a way for the Nuggets to make room, and so is moving Johnson out. However, the Nuggets hardly have any assets left to sweeten salary-dump trades, and losing Johnson would be costly, as he's shooting over 43 percent from deep this season and is on an affordable contract anyway.
Will the Nuggets let Braun go to make room for Watson? This seems like a possible route Denver could take. But his best bet for maintaining his status as a title-contender during Jockey's prime is to endure the tax hit for at least a year before making a change if he really has to.
Winning fixes everything. And for a Nuggets team that is about to be financially ruined, all the blood they shed will be worth it if they hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy in June.
