DeMar DeRozan is a six-time All-Star entering his 18th NBA season. He averaged 18.4 points and 4.1 assists last year. He just signed with the Denver Nuggets for $3.9 million.
That figure is the one-year veteran minimum for players with 10 or more years of service. Denver is paying All-Star production at the price of a end-of-bench contract.
Jokic Closed The Deal
DeRozan had options. He spoke with Miami, Washington and New Orleans during free agency. What tipped it was a phone call from Nikola Jokic telling him Denver was his best shot at a ring.
When the best player in the world personally recruits you, the other meetings become formalities. DeRozan is 37 and has never won a championship across stops in Toronto, San Antonio, Chicago and Sacramento. Denver is his fifth team since Toronto drafted him ninth overall in 2009.
The Fit Is Better Than It Looks On Paper
The instinct is to worry about spacing, because DeRozan has never been a volume three-point shooter and Denver already asks a lot of its non-Jokic lineups.
That analysis misses what Denver actually needs. The Nuggets’ recurring problem has been bench units that cannot generate a shot when Jokic sits. DeRozan is one of the most reliable self-creators of his generation. He gets to his spots in the midrange, draws fouls, and does not need a screen or an advantage to produce points.
Give him five minutes a half with the second unit and Denver stops bleeding leads in the stretches that have cost them playoff series.
The Risk Is Minimal
This is a one-year deal at the minimum. If DeRozan’s defense is a problem in a playoff series, Michael Malone plays him less. If his usage clogs the offense next to Jamal Murray, the rotation adjusts. Nothing about this contract restricts Denver’s flexibility in any way.
The Nuggets also moved Peyton Watson to Cleveland as part of a four-team trade this offseason, so there were minutes to reallocate on the wing. Watson was young and versatile, but he was never going to give Denver 18 points a night off the bench.
What It Says About The League
A six-time All-Star taking the minimum to chase a title used to be a late-career curiosity. It is now the primary market correction for players over 35 in a second-apron world. Teams cannot pay them, and contenders are the only ones offering something they want.
Denver won the bidding without bidding. That is what having Jokic does for a front office.
The Verdict
Best value signing of the offseason, and it is not close. The Nuggets addressed their single most persistent weakness for less than they will spend on assistant coaches, and they did it because their franchise player picked up the phone.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.