The Denver Nuggets came within one game of the Western Conference Finals last season, losing to the Portland Trail Blazers and seven games in the second round.
Nikola Jokic leads a talented young squad that’s going up against a more Wide Open West this year, and it could be time for Denver to finally stop being the team of the future and be the team of today.
However, the Nuggets still have some contract questions up in the air, and it looks like the team wants to clear those up. According to Mike Singer of the Denver Post, the Nuggets are looking to sign early extensions with both Juancho Hernangomez and Malik Beasley.
Via Denver Post:The Nuggets have until Oct. 21 to agree to early extensions. If they don’t, they’ll likely become restricted free agents next summer. Theoretically, interested teams could wage a bidding war with the Nuggets and drive the price up.
Denver wants to get a deal done with both players before the deadline, a league source said, rather than risk that scenario with two valuable young players.
They’ve got about a month to establish parameters on what that might look like.
Beasley and Hernangomez are both players who contributed to Denver’s 54-win team last season. They combined to play a whopping 151 games last year for the Nuggets, and both are young, positive VORP players early in their careers.
Although they are both in position for an extension, Beasley and Hernangomez aren’t in the same boat. Beasley is a more productive player, and has the opportunity to perhaps reach out for restricted free agent deals that might be more lucrative this summer. Signing with the Nuggets now would mean more security, and perhaps a spot on a winning team to help boost his resume for his next contract.
Hernangomez has been less productive, and therefore will garner less attention. Injuries have hurt his ability to produce, and the Nuggets have an abundance of talent at his position.
Still, that the team wants to extend both of them should say something about how they view their talent in a vacuum. Contextually, both players make sense from a depth perspective for Denver.
Whether they sign if they’re offered new deals is another thing altogether.
