Last Saturday, the Denver Nuggets and Jamal Murray formally agreed to a long term max extension that will keep the star point guard in Denver through the 2028-29 season.

It was a lot of guaranteed money, and most contracts are these days. With the salary cap going up every single season, contracts in the NBA are reaching unprecedented heights. Back in the famous 2016 offseason that saw Kevin Durant go to the Golden State Warriors due to the cap spike, then Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley signed for the most guaranteed money in NBA history, a five-year, $152.6 million contract. That was an average annual value of $30.5 million.

Eight years later, 66 players have a contract with an average annual value exceeding $30 million.

It’s important to understand that before discussing NBA player money. What might have been considered an overpay at one time is now considered a bargain.

Take Aaron Gordon and his current contract, a four-year, $90.4 million contract extension the Nuggets signed him to back in 2021. It was a deal that was loudly criticized in some corners by high profile media members. Since then, Gordon’s contract has turned from an overpay into a bargain. The 28-year-old power forward was the third best player on the Denver Nuggets 2023 title team, yet he will make the 76th most money of any NBA player in the 2024-25 season.

Here’s where his cap hit ranks in 2024-25:

73. Jaden McDaniels – $23.02 million

t74. Brook Lopez – $23.0 million

t74. Bruce Brown – $23.0 million

76. Aaron Gordon – $22.84 million

77. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope – $22.76 million

Honestly an incredibly humorous list.

Back to Murray though. The Nuggets knew they had to get that deal done, and Murray was incentivized to agree as well. On top of both sides wanting to maintain the status quo, there were limited options outside of renewing their prior agreement. For Murray, the list of cap space teams next offseason was effectively just the Brooklyn Nets. While other teams might have made themselves available, there’s a significant chance Murray wouldn’t have had a similar offer to the one the Nuggets presented him this offseason.

For the Nuggets, Murray’s the second element of the championship core from 2023. As awesome as Nikola Jokic has proven to be, it’s when he has an elite second option next to him that the Nuggets have reached new heights. In the last five postseasons, the Nuggets reached the Western Conference Finals in 2020 and won the championship in 2023. In 2021 and 2022 without Murray healthy, the team wasn’t as potent. In 2024 with Murray hampered by injury and significantly less effective, the Nuggets fell short.

The deal the Nuggets gave to Murray came down to his irreplaceability. With where Denver’s draft assets are, it would have been next to impossible to find a second option capable of replacing Murray’s playoff production. Most answers fans throw out there are impossible options like Luka Doncic or Stephen Curry. Even more reasonable answers like De’Aaron Fox, Trae Young, Darius Garland, or LaMelo Ball are extremely unlikely deals that one side or the other would be insulted by.

So, Murray it is. He’s locked in with Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. for the next three seasons. Those three will account for a combined $123.3 million this year, $140.0 million next year, and $149.9 million the year after. It’s a lot of money but a reasonable price to pay if it means playoff success.

Of course, I’m forgetting a major part of Denver’s championship core: Aaron Gordon. It’s possible that the 2024-25 season will be Gordon’s last one in Denver unless both sides agree to an extension shortly.

Gordon has two more years left on his contract at that $22.84 million figure in both seasons; however, the final year is a player option. And because it has been three years since Gordon signed his veteran extension, he will be officially extension eligible once again on September 27th.

The Nuggets have a while to agree to an extension with Gordon as the rules on his extension deadline are a bit different than Murray. Still, there’s a benefit to the Nuggets trying to get this done early. Remember when the Nuggets were criticized for his last contract? Had they waited for the salary cap to increase instead, the dollar figure on Gordon’s deal might have been even higher.

It can be smart business to do the deal sooner for both sides as it eliminates risk. Gordon is happy in Denver as part of the team’s championship formula. Of course, with 2025 free agency looming, Gordon could be one of the top free agents in a dwindling class. It’s very possible that he and Myles Turner could be the top free agents in 2025, at least among players that could reasonably change teams.

If a team offers Gordon $35 to $40 million per year to capitalize on his late prime, that wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest. Perhaps the Nuggets will be unwilling to go above a certain number to retain him like they were with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. If the Nuggets let it get to that point, they will be playing with fire for all future championship hopes.

Personally, I think they should try and get a deal done sooner than later and avoid anymore painful pilfering of their championship supporting cast. Bruce Brown and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was enough. Allowing Aaron Gordon to walk away without any compensation would be a bridge too far.

With that in mind, I think the Nuggets and Gordon land on roughly a four-year, $140 million extension sometime soon.

Comparable Contracts signed by other forwards in the last two offseasons, via Spotrac.

The Nuggets are legally allowed to offer Gordon a 40% raise off the final year of his salary as the starting point of his next contract, a change to the previous CBA. A full 40% increase of $22.81 million is $31.98 million, which would be the first year salary of Gordon’s projected extension in 2025-26.

For posterity sake, let’s call it $31.5 million and use a round number. $31.5 million in 2025-26 would be right around Dejounte Murray, Tyler Herro, and Julius Randle as the 53rd, 54th, and 55th highest salaries that year. As long as the Nuggets gave Gordon max raises of 7.5% every year, a deal starting at $31.5 million would pay Gordon roughly $140.9 million over four years:

  • 2024-25 – $22.84 million (last year of contract, declining 2025-26 player option)
  • 2025-26 – $31.5 million (first year of extension)
  • 2026-27 – $33.86 million
  • 2027-28 – $36.40 million
  • 2028-29 – $39.13 million

*Projected

I would consider that close to market value for Gordon, and it’s about as much as the Nuggets can legally offer him in a contract extension. In the past, the Nuggets have made deals with their stars by offering as much money as they can and figuring out the details later. This feels like one of those times, and it makes sense for both sides.

Will the Nuggets ultimately get a deal done? It would ensure the championship core stays together. Whether the Nuggets believe they can afford said championship core, or if Gordon wants to commit to the next five years in Denver, remains to be seen.