Murray, 27, has one season remaining on his current deal before the extension takes effect, keeping him under contract in Denver until 2029. The two sides paused contract talks earlier this offseason, with the Nuggets planning to offer a max after the conclusion of the Paris Olympics, sources said. Murray suited up for the Canadian national team, which won its group but was eliminated in the quarterfinals without a medal.

Murray’s efficiency struggles from the 2024 NBA playoffs carried over to the Olympics. Averaging 21 minutes off the bench with Canada, he converted just 29% of his shots from the field and 14% of his 3-point attempts for 6.0 points per game.

He was 40% from the floor and 31.5% beyond the arc in Denver’s 12-game playoff run, which was cut short by Minnesota in the second round. Murray was attempting to play through a left calf strain after a season’s worth of minor leg injuries that caused him to miss 23 games, eliminating him from All-NBA and supermax contract eligibility. Nuggets president Josh Kroenke said in August that Murray was still dealing with an ankle injury “among others” during the playoffs and Olympics.

“He was playing through some dings, some pretty good dings, that probably would keep most people out of the game,” Kroenke said.

Murray returned to Denver after the Olympics and participated in workouts at Ball Arena.

“If Jamal is in shape and in condition, he’s a totally different beast,” general manager Calvin Booth said after the season ended. “He obviously wore down a little bit at the end of the playoffs.”

Other than those durability concerns, Murray’s 2023-24 regular season was exceptional. He matched or outdid previous career-bests in scoring (21.2 points), assists (6.5), rebounding percentage (6.6%), field goal percentage (48.1%), 3-point percentage (42.5%) and usage rate (27.3%) to help the Nuggets tie a franchise record with 57 wins. They were 16-2 when he scored 25 or more points and 8-9 when he played but scored 17 or fewer. In the games he missed, Denver went 13-10.

Murray has spent all eight years of his career in Denver, including a season-long recovery period in 2021-22 after he tore his left ACL. His partnership with Nikola Jokic has been the defining characteristic of two Western Conference Finals runs and an NBA championship, the first in franchise history. But he has never made an All-Star Game or an All-NBA team, hindered by injuries and slow starts to his seasons.

That lack of individual accolades is mostly eclipsed by his clutch reputation. In 53 career playoff games before 2024, he averaged 25 points, five rebounds and 6.3 assists on 40.4% 3-point shooting. He registered a 30-point triple-double in an NBA Finals game, scored 50 twice in a memorable 2020 series win over Utah and averaged 32.5 points in the 2023 Western Conference Finals. Even amid his struggles this spring, he made two game-winning shots against the Lakers in the first round, including a buzzer-beater.

The new extension means Murray is guaranteed more than $244 million over the next five seasons, starting with a salary cap hit of $36 million in 2024-25, according to Spotrac. The Nuggets now have a projected $200.48 million committed in salary to 13 players for the 2025-26 season, including three contracts that include player options (Aaron Gordon, Russell Westbrook, Dario Saric) and three more with team options (Christian Braun, Peyton Watson, Julian Strawther). That leaves Denver with an estimated $7.8 million in room below the second tax apron.

Gordon is next up. He will become eligible for an extension on Sept. 27, a week before the Nuggets open preseason play in Abu Dhabi. There is mutual interest in getting a deal done, sources told The Denver Post.

After opening the 2024-25 season at home, Denver will play its first road game in Toronto, where Murray is traditionally greeted with applause and appreciation by Raptors fans. He grew up nearby in Kitchener, Ontario.

Bennett, which games do you have circled on the Nuggets schedule this year?

— Daniel, Sloans Lake

I’ll give you five since you asked so nicely (and because I was on vacation when the schedule was released). Let’s start with the obvious: Jan. 21, 2025. That’s the day the 76ers come to town. This game guarantees intrigue and entertainment regardless of what happens with the elephant in the room. If Joel Embiid plays, it’ll be his first time facing Denver on Nikola Jokic’s home turf since Nov. 8, 2019. If he doesn’t play, the peanut gallery will relish every second of it. Ball Arena will be uproarious. Either way, great theater. (My favorite scheduling tidbit: Inauguration Day is Jan. 20, meaning the NBA has guaranteed that an entire American presidency begins and ends without Embiid playing in Denver.)

2. The Grizzlies are the wildest wild card in the league after the high peaks and low valleys of the last two years. And the Nuggets get to visit them on Beale Street for an NBA Cup (in-season tournament) clash early in the season. I couldn’t make this list without highlighting at least one game that’ll be played on a goofy court, and this one is the most fascinating to me. Ja Morant back from the dead, just in time for the Group of Death.

3. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes his return to Denver on Feb. 6. It’s a tasty matchup even before factoring in what’s sure to be a tear-jerking tribute video. The Magic swept the Nuggets last season, and the last two meetings between these teams in Denver have both been memorable. Paolo Banchero scored 32 points in his first career triple-double to lead an 18-point comeback last January, ending with Jamal Murray’s last-second miss. The year before, Jokic sank a game-winning 3 with 1.2 ticks left. Orlando is intent on leveling up in the East now with KCP’s guidance.

4. Denver plays a back-to-back series in Oklahoma City, March 9 and 10. Major litmus test a couple of weeks after the All-Star break. The way I see it, the Thunder deserve to be clear preseason favorites to win the West, unlike last year when it felt like they were still in the early stages of their rise, punching above their weight class to hang with Denver in the standings. The Nuggets are back to being underdogs this season, in this matchup at minimum. The back-to-back also takes place during a grueling, make-or-break stretch of the schedule, surrounded by the Celtics, Kings, Suns, Timberwolves and Lakers.

5. Another back-to-back, Jan. 3 and 4 against the Spurs. After the first game in Denver, both teams fly to San Antonio. I for one have my fingers crossed the Nuggets bring Jokic along for Round 2 because it would be devastating to deprive basketball fans of a single Joker vs. Wemby battle from now on.

While the Nuggets got one championship out of the current ownership-GM-coach setup, there seems to always be a 5-10% simmer of conflict between the three dealing with salaries, roster-building and playing time. … Another season of not reaching the expected potential will bring about what: Malone or Booth gone? Trading assets (anyone not including Jokic)? Or more patience and retooling for next season?

— John Steichen, Fort Collins

Ah, the paradoxical question that obsesses every sports fan about his or her team. You pose it while hoping it will never be answered.

Seeing as this is awfully hypothetical and premature for a team that views itself as a top-tier championship contender, I can only give you educated guesswork, not reporting. My sense is that sweeping change would be more likely than complete static if the 2024-25 season went awry. What changes, exactly? Nothing you suggested is impossible, once you wrap your head around the notion that Jokic is the most essential person to any team in the league right now. By that logic, he’s also the only truly immovable object in the Nuggets’ organization.

This is a cutthroat league. Think about Milwaukee, another small market franchise that was lifted to the pinnacle by a transcendent European star. Two summers later, the coach was fired and a player from the championship core was traded. It all started with a second-round Game 7 loss the year after the Bucks won the title. Even in the underdog cities, patience runs thin.

All that being said, I have a hard time envisioning the Nuggets finishing lower than fourth in the West this season, barring major injuries. With a team this good, hot seats are usually a topic reserved for the playoffs, so I don’t see this as an imminent issue. Michael Malone is tenured and beloved in Denver, and Josh Kroenke hasn’t hesitated to speak highly of general manager Calvin Booth in the recent past.

From the outside looking in, it seems Booth and Malone are not aligned. Case in point is Zeke Nnaji. I read that Booth said Nnaji was drafted as a 4 and we (Malone?) tried to make him a small 5, and it hasn’t worked. It seems like Booth still talks as if Nnaji has value, but then he drafts Holmes who he says is a 4 all day. Two questions … Where do you think Booth stands on Nnaji? Are Booth and Malone not in sync on the direction to play youth?

— Michael, Denver

I don’t think it’s any secret that Malone is often reluctant to give extended runway to young players. Booth has placed a clear emphasis on the draft, out of necessity from his perspective. Malone has addressed this friction in his own words. “As a coach, I’m thinking, ‘How do we win the next game?’ That’s my job,” he said after the season. “Calvin, as a GM, is thinking about, ‘How do we win the next couple of years?’ That’s his job.”

Translation: A little tension is inherent and healthy in the working relationship between a coach and GM. Fair enough. It’s just a matter of whether the Nuggets can locate the proper balance. Nnaji might be an example that they haven’t fully accomplished that yet. Doesn’t mean they can’t.

From a game-to-game standpoint during the season, that balance rests on Malone’s shoulders. With DaRon Holmes II injured, there will be no rookie playing time for him to manage this season unlike the last two, perhaps a silver lining for a lousy situation. Instead, this year it’s more about Malone’s approach to expanding players’ roles: Christian Braun to the starting lineup (potentially), Julian Strawther to the rotation, Peyton Watson to the playoff rotation.

As for Nnaji, Booth has been clear that he still believes in him. But the contract obviously looks terrible right now. I think the best Denver can hope for is an enhancement of Nnaji’s trade value early this season — which, of course, requires playing time.

Thank you, Bennett, for your excellent insight to our beloved Nuggets. I know there is much debate about whether or not MPJ is worth his max contract and if he should be traded. I’m wondering what his next contract looks like if he continues to play like he has the past few years (solid offensive option and on the defensive glass while providing little defensively.) If he stays on this trajectory, do you think the Nuggets would offer him another max contract, or something more in line with the kind of contract Aaron Gordon has now? And would MPJ take that? What are your thoughts? Thanks!

— Eric, Parker

Depends on the market for him, right? If Porter makes it to the end of his current contract without getting traded, and suitors aren’t lining up to offer him a second max in free agency, then he might not have a choice but than to accept something less. I think a lot of teams are feeling stingier by necessity about giving out that type of contract right now, with the new CBA guardrails in place.

Based on that logic alone, I think MPJ is a case where it wouldn’t hurt the Nuggets to wait, rather than sign him as soon as he’s extension-eligible. It’s also relevant context that Denver’s current general manager is not the same GM who signed Porter to a max deal the first time.

There are still three years left on the current contract, so a lot can happen before 2027. Everything I hear is that Porter is a relentlessly hard worker when it comes to his body; maybe by then, his injury history is behind him and he’s one of the best shooters in the league without an asterisk. Or maybe the past keeps haunting him. Maybe he’ll be traded before 2027. It’s tough to project his future right now.

Are any local press traveling to Abu Dhabi with the team?

— Grace, Oakland

Let’s just say I’ve been researching neck pillows in my free time lately.

Looking ahead, who do you see having the better season at Ball Arena? The Nuggets and Avs are stacked and ready to make postseason runs again, but my money is on the Avs with Gabe Landeskog making his return. Seems like too many unknowns with the Nuggets rotation.

— Rip, Aurora

Someone always asks me a Nuggets-Avalanche comparison question. This one’s a coin flip, honestly. I’d push back on your point about the Nuggets’ unknowns by saying those are mostly deeper in the rotation, whereas Landeskog and Val Nichushkin are still the two biggest, most expensive unknowns in Denver sports right now (unless you count the buyout money Deion Sanders will owe CU once Florida State has an opening in December).

The West is so good in the NBA that I’d lean toward the Avs having a better regular season. But I’ll always maintain the Stanley Cup Playoffs can be especially cruel or fluky. The Nuggets have a better chance to reach their Finals.

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Since 1990, a span of 35 NBA Finals, the Wild West has been repped by the top seed 18 different times — most recently in 2023, when a certain Denver team with a pretty good center from Serbia wound up winning the whole thing.

On the other hand, the kids up in the Grading The Week offices are still having a hard time shaking the postseason memories from this past spring out of our collective noggins. And that goes double for May 2019, when it felt as if CJ McCollum, then with Portland, turned up at Ball Arena and couldn’t miss.

We also can’t help wondering if Kentavious Caldwell-Pope might be onto something.

In case you missed it, the former Nuggets guard appeared on Draymond Green’s podcast this past Wednesday and made no bones about why the defending NBA champs spent so much time looking as if they were sleepwalking against the Lakers and Timberwolves: They were, in fact, pooped.

“I feel like that’s where we spent most of our energy and time, trying to get that first-place (seeding),” KCP, who recently signed a free-agent deal with the Orlando Magic, told Green. “We get to the playoffs, we had no gas. We felt like the Lakers should’ve beat us, we (were) down every game.”

Nuggets pushing too hard for a 1 seed — C

Coach Michael Malone almost immediately admitted that he’d pushed the pedal to the metal and rode his stars in April to clinch the top seed, and home court, throughout the Western Conference bracket.

In Malone’s defense, as we noted, the No. 1 seed in the West has reached the NBA Finals since 1990 more than the other seven seeds combined. Plus, the atmosphere and altitude at Ball Arena are traditionally a challenge for opposing teams’ collective lungs and eardrums. The Sixth Man at 5,280 feet rarely fails.

Although “rarely” doesn’t mean “never.” And the last decade of postseason play has started to knock conventional wisdom squarely on its backside.

The bottom-line argument for owning a home-court advantage is being able to play that card in Game 7, to settle a nasty series within friendly confines. Yet since the start of the 2016-17 season, we’ve had 21 non-pandemic Game 7s in the NBA Playoffs. The home teams are 9-12 in those win-or-go-fishing showdowns.

And since the start of the 2021-22 campaign, there’ve been 12 postseason Game 7s. The home team’s gone 4-8. Over the last decade, the Nuggets are 1-2 all-time as Game 7 hosts. It’s enough to make you wonder if fresh legs, come mid-May, are a better arrow to have in your quiver.

Leaner Javonte Williams — A-minus

Full disclosure: Team GTW has always had a soft spot for the Broncos’ big No. 33. So hats off to Williams for admitting recently that he’s gotten a little less big and has fewer, you know, soft spots around the belly.

While Williams credits his coach with the suggestion he slim down to his current fighting weight of 221 pounds, we’ll bet you a Snickers bar, given what we’ve learned of Sean Payton’s (cough) subtlety (cough) when it comes to criticism, that even a little constructive fat-shaming didn’t feel great. But if it gives Broncos Country more runs like the one Williams famously pulled off against Baltimore — we counted four Ravens missed tackles, and at least three defenders carried — in October 2021, we’ll all raise a toast (of water) to no snacks after 7 p.m.

Takis — F

Mind you, the GTW crew is also pretty sure Williams’ agent groaned when his client cited the specific snack brand — Takis — that helped contribute to the running back’s weight gain. Pro athlete rule No. 712: Never throw a company that might hand you a sweet endorsement deal under the nearest bus. Points to Javonte for speaking truths, though, especially if it means more snaps for him and more Habanero Fury Kettlez — this is a real Takis chip, we swear — for the rest of us.

Heck, yeah. Get him outta there. No rookie deserves that circus, let alone a nice kid from Prairie View High.

But the part about Russell Westbrook?

Yeah, not so much.

On Friday morning, the former NBA and Kansas star got Team GTW’s eyebrows up on Fox Sports 1’s “Undisputed” when he suggested Big Russ — assuming the Jazz buy Westbrook out and the Nuggets snap him up — should slot immediately into Denver’s starting five.

“I kind of look at him (as) like a Jason Kidd role on Dallas,” Pierce said, referring to the 2011 title-winners. “I think you could put him in as a starter like you did Jason Kidd … I like him as a starter.”

Us?

Also … not so much.

The Russell Westbrook Era in Denver — A-minus.

Yes, Westbrook is a “name” addition to an elite, title-chasing roster led by a three-time MVP (Nikola Jokic) at the peak of his powers. It’s a win-now addition. But at the same time …

Russell Westbrook as a Nuggets starter — D.

… let’s not overthink this. For one, it’s 2024 Russ, not 2017.

For two, don’t ever press your luck with a rotational upgrade. We know they’re not the same guy, and bear with us, but as a like-for-like, Russell Westbrook projects as a pretty decent upgrade — as a backup point guard/fill-in over Reggie Jackson.

Per Basketball-Reference.com, the former NBA MVP is projected over 36 minutes a game to average 18.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.6 assists while hitting on 29.0% of his treys and averaging .058 Win Shares per 48 minutes. Jackson is projected by the site’s computers to average 16.3 points and 5.6 dimes per 36 minutes while draining treys at a 34.2% clip with .043 Win Shares per 48 minutes. In a Nuggets offseason that’s lacked sexy moments, you take whatever wins fall in your lap.

For three, don’t worry — Russ is going to start at some point. Why? Because Jamal Murray is going to get hurt. Or need rest. Or both. Again, don’t overthink this.

For four, who’s going to be your go-to offensive threat, your spark, in that second unit if Westbrook is in the starting five?

Christian Braun? Julian Strawther? Peyton Watson? Having Russ as an anchor off the bench makes that pecking order clear cut — and also provides leadership and a compliment/change-of-pace for a second five that’s already shaping up to be pretty young. And we already know how much coach Michael Malone trusts youth, don’t we?

For five, and this is back to pressing your luck again, but a guy who turns 36 in mid-November probably needs to be on a pitch count when it comes to minutes.

Here’s why: Last season, Beastbrook played 30 or more minutes nine times for the Clippers. Los Angeles went 4-5 in those games. In 11 starts, the Artists Formerly Known at Lob City went 4-7.

Westbrook off the bench put up a better total shooting percentage (51.6% to 50.8%), a better free-throw percentage (69.9% to 58.8%) and a better assist-to-turnover ratio (2.21 to 1.9) than he did as a starter.

Slotting Westbrook into an already proven “big four” — Jokic, Murray, Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. — that won a title without him feels like a bigger risk than elevating Braun or Watson, who already know the personnel.

And sure, moving the Blue Arrow off the ball with the starting unit is a noble concept for a guy who probably also needs a pitch count to keep his legs fresh for the postseason. But you think Murray, in (for now) a contract year, is going to want the ball out of his hands? Yeah, neither do we, Paul. Neither do we.

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The expected addition of former MVP Russell Westbrook should put a bow on Denver’s 2024 offseason, barring any eventual trades and the anticipated signing of DeAndre Jordan. Losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope looms large, but general manager Calvin Booth has attempted to upgrade the bench through free agency, using every bit of roster-building wiggle room at his disposal after the Nuggets avoided the second tax apron by not re-signing Caldwell-Pope.

Their roster payroll will still exceed the first apron, like last season. Currently projected around $181.5 million, the Nuggets will be limited in some ways (making for another quiet trade deadline, in all likelihood), and they’ll be hard-capped at the second apron ($188.9 million) due to the taxpayer mid-level exception they used to sign Dario Saric. But they’re already familiar enough with the first-apron restrictions, whereas most front offices around the league are regarding the second apron with caution. Nobody can fully comprehend yet how damaging those penalties are to a team’s future, because a long-term example hasn’t unfolded yet. The CBA is still too new. Phoenix seems prepared to accept the role of guinea pig.

That’s all to say, this version of Denver’s roster is probably the final version. So what might the rotation look like during the upcoming 2024-25 season? Let’s take a look.

(Can’t view the chart in mobile? Click here.)

* Projects Westbrook and Jordan signing veteran minimum contracts | Salary figures courtesy of Spotrac | DaRon Holmes II is on the 15-man roster with a cap hit of $3.1 million, but he is expected to miss the season with an Achilles injury

Guards

The backcourt is probably the thinnest part of this roster until it proves otherwise, mostly because a depth chart cannot be completed without a two-way player. Braun’s potential elevation to the starting lineup should be one of the defining storylines of the season as the Nuggets hope to replace, if not entirely replicate, KCP’s defensive impact and offensive fit. Can Braun take the next step? Can Strawther diversify his game while also refining his 3-point shot after getting phased out of the rotation last season? Perimeter productivity will be essential for these rookie scale contract players in increased roles. After a strong Summer League performance, Alexander also seems like a candidate to encroach on some backup minutes as a combo guard.

Then there’s Westbrook, whose presence in Denver will surely pique national curiosity surrounding this team. Will that cause a distraction or a jolt of energy in the locker room? Westbrook generally needs the ball in his hands to be most effective, so it’s easier to envision him leading the second unit than appearing in lineups with both Murray and Jokic (though Murray certainly can operate as a two-guard). Still, considering Michael Malone’s preference for staggering Murray with the bench, there should be opportunities for Westbrook to develop two-man chemistry with Jokic. That would be a nimble variable to make use of during the playoffs. In 2024, Denver didn’t have that with Reggie Jackson, whose minutes dropped significantly after the regular season.

With the bench, Westbrook’s greatest asset might be the breakneck pace at which he competes. Tempo has been a core aspect of the identity of a second unit that struggles to generate high-quality shots in the halfcourt offense without Jokic. Denver is destination that should allow Russ to run freely.

Wings

One beneficial ripple effect of Denver’s offseason moves: Even after Holmes’ injury, the increase in frontcourt flexibility should allow Watson to play the three, a more natural position for him. Versatility is always encouraged in young players, so his training at the four last season wasn’t a waste. But offensively, he’s probably better suited to continue his development as a rangy small forward. His 3-pointer showed signs that it could be a weapon for him. Same with his pull-up midrange shot. There’s plenty for him to explore next season away from the dunker spot.

Bottom line on the wing: If the Nuggets can get 70 or more games from Porter again, they should be in a favorable place in the Western Conference.

Bigs

Saric, Gordon, Nnaji and Jordan are all capable of playing the five behind Jokic. (Holmes was supposed to be able to as well, but now maybe there’s a chance Nuggets fans see more of Hall instead.) Ideally for Denver, Saric will be well-worth the taxpayer mid-level exception, potentially sparing Gordon from his dual identity in the playoffs and allowing him to expend his energy the way he does best, as Jokic’s partner at power forward.

Saric can shape-shift and share the floor with other centers as well, adding a dimension to Malone’s options. Does he make sense as a four next to Jokic? Would that clear more minutes for Nnaji at backup center? The Holmes loss stings because he could have doubled as a second-unit center while also supplying arguably the best defensive profile to fit alongside Jokic.

Cancar’s opportunity also seems likely to increase after the rookie’s injury, but he struggled to shoot the ball at Slovenia’s Olympic qualifying tournament this summer. Backup four could end up being another potential weak spot where Nnaji could earn minutes.

That certainly applies to the Nuggets. Standout guard Julian Strawther was in street clothes Tuesday at Denver’s 80-66 loss to the Charlotte Hornets, and he’ll likely be done for the duration of the team’s stay in Las Vegas.

Here are three takeaways from the loss as the Nuggets fell to 0-3 at Summer League 2024.

Trey Alexander could be this year’s impact two-way contract

Alexander has comfortably been Denver’s second-best option in Las Vegas behind Strawther. And with Strawther resting Tuesday’s game, the new two-way player from Creighton got an opportunity to shine as a lead guard. Alexander went for 18 points and eight rebounds, bringing his Summer League averages to 16 and 5.3.

The rookie plays with good spatial instinct and operates at his own pace with the ball. He’s knocking down 3s off the dribble and the catch. He’s getting to the line when he attacks the rim. He said on the broadcast Tuesday that Denver knew the Hornets would be in a lot of drop coverage, allowing him to prioritize getting to his confident midrange jumper.

After three steady performances — starting when he came off the bench last Friday — Alexander is shooting 50% on 10.7 field goal attempts per game and 46% on 4.3 outside attempts per game. Seeing as Michael Malone was already impressed by his week at mini camp before the trip to Vegas, this summer might be tracking toward Alexander becoming a valuable regular-season role player.

Jalen Pickett’s Summer League struggles

On a less encouraging note, Denver’s sophomore point guard is still waiting for a breakout game at Cox Pavilion. Pickett is now shooting 5 for 22 at his second Summer League for an average of 4.7 points after a 3-for-9 outing Tuesday.

He displayed his skill at scoring and distributing out of post-ups a bit Tuesday, but he’s not accessing the paint enough to be consistently effective. There have also been a few instances of him getting beat off the dribble at the defensive end of the floor this week.

Pickett is clearly a gifted passer, but the other dimensions of his game with the ball need to improve in order for him to optimize that.

Why the Nuggets are 0-3

The lack of size on Denver’s Summer League roster has been glaring, especially since DaRon Holmes’ season-ending Achilles tear last Friday. Opponents immediately started taking advantage of the Nuggets on the offensive glass after that, and with two-way big man PJ Hall getting the game off Tuesday, the problem was exacerbated.

Charlotte grabbed 18 offensive rebounds for 18 second-chance points, also outscoring Denver in the paint by 12. Parker Braun, the tallest guy on the roster, was the only player who ended the day with a positive plus-minus, in 10 minutes.

Holmes’ injury took the air out of this year’s Summer League festivities throughout the Nuggets’ organization, and now they’re going to miss the playoffs in Las Vegas. The primary goal at this point should be avoiding further injuries.

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His sense of humor seems to be enigmatic. His friends have trouble describing it, at least. He’s tremendously funny, they insist, but in that “you have to know him” kind of way. He delivers a churn of “non-stop jokes all day,” Jalen Pickett said, but “some of those jokes we can’t say out loud.”

“He’s just super sarcastic,” Peyton Watson said Sunday night while watching Strawther at NBA Summer League. “He’s got almost like a pessimistic humor.”

Strawther’s miss from the left wing hammered the final nail in an 84-81 Nuggets loss to the Toronto Raptors. His dissection of the sideline out-of-bounds play afterward wasn’t played for laughs, but it might’ve offered a small glimpse into what Watson means. “That was a great call,” Strawther said, complimenting Summer League coach Andrew Munson for noticing Toronto wasn’t switching off-ball screens. “I mean, that’s about as good as it gets for a guy that’s got it going. I’ve just gotta make it next time.”

That would be a reductive summary of Denver’s second consecutive Summer League loss. Strawther was the star of the show again in Las Vegas, amassing 32 points and five assists on 10-of-21 shooting. He was 6 for 11 from 3-point range before the final play, and one of those misses could be chalked up to Strawther receiving the ball late in the 24-second clock with no choice but to hoist. It was an immediate uptick in efficiency from his first Summer League game Friday when he was still Denver’s best offensive player.

And he was playing on a bothersome right ankle.

“I rolled it during the training camp in Denver,” he said while the ankle was wrapped up. “Took a couple days off. Just rehabbed it as much as I could. Came out here. Obviously felt good enough to play in these first two games. It’s there. I’m good.”

Minutes into the game, Strawther reached down to massage the ankle, wincing. Nuggets coach Michael Malone got up from his court-side seat to check on Strawther during the Nuggets’ huddle at the first timeout. Playing through injury during Summer League is a serious risk in a relatively low-stakes environment, after all. And Strawther might’ve felt more inclined to exercise caution after watching rookie teammate DaRon Holmes II tear his right Achilles in the fourth quarter Friday.

But as he rationalized while riding a freight elevator downstairs for his postgame interview Sunday, he didn’t come to Vegas to sit and watch.

So Strawther attacked.

The coaching staff’s mission to showcase his ball-in-hand offense has been carried out thoroughly, if not always effectively. That’s kind of the point of Summer League.

Strawther is evidently unafraid of contact, for instance, even if he’s not consistent at finishing through it. His drives are experiments. And testaments to his toughness in the face of that injury.

“I’m playing my role, and whatever role is given to me,” he said. “At Gonzaga, I didn’t have that many opportunities to get downhill. I was a shooter. In a space like this, in an environment like this where I’m able to get downhill and guys are super amped up, playing super hard, it’s good to kind of get in there and draw some fouls.”

To be clear: Unlocking other skill sets doesn’t mean fully inhabiting another position, in Strawther’s mind.

“At the end of the day, I’m not a true point guard,” he said Sunday. “That’ll never be my true position.”

Other fundamental elements to his game may warrant equal or more attention, most importantly the catch-and-shoot bedrock of his 2023 draft profile. He was only 29.7% beyond the arc as a rookie despite occasional displays of heat-check potential. Just before Summer League, Strawther spent some time at Aaron Gordon’s warehouse-turned-basketball court, getting up shots. His entire development depends on that 3-point percentage.

“He obviously has a gift shooting the rock,” Watson told The Post. “He’s a big-time shooter. That’s gonna be big for us this coming year. I’m super excited for him. He already showed flashes of what he can do this season, and he’s had some big games for us already. So I expect him to have plenty more, and I can’t wait to play a lot more with him.”

Encasing all these layers to who or what Strawther can be in the NBA is his grasp of pace. After he injured his knee in January and was resigned to the end of the bench, Malone often gave him tasks before the Nuggets’ games. On any given night, Strawther might have been instructed to focus entirely on Jamal Murray. “Or whether it’s a guy on the other team that might have a similar archetype to me,” Strawther explained. “Just getting me to think the game instead of just play it.”

“I feel like when I first got into the league, everything was moving a lot faster than I anticipated, just because when you watch the game on TV, just like the average fan, you think guys aren’t playing that hard. They’re playing hard,” he said. “They’re moving, and they’re strong and quick.

“At first, it’ll catch you by surprise, and it’s easy to get sped up, especially by a vet that knows you’re a younger guy that hasn’t experienced much. So (it helped) just being able to go through the year and kind of slow my game down, not only just physically with speed but also mentally, just processing things. Being able to see things before they happen a little bit.”

If that abstract area of improvement is the source of Strawther’s Summer League success, maybe it’s because observational tasks are perfectly suited for him.

After all, the closest Watson could get to pinpointing Strawther’s sense of humor was this.

“He’s just really observant, really intelligent — so he’ll just point something out, and it will be funny, just in his tone and the way that he says it.”

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Sitting between teammates Zeke Nnaji and Peyton Watson, Braun was an enthusiastic front-row spectator at Denver’s NBA Summer League opener Friday night. So much so that he was careful not to step aside for an interview as the second half was beginning, requesting rather to wait for the stoppage at the end of the third quarter.

That’s when he explained that his appearance in Las Vegas is about more than just supporting his brother Parker, who’s suiting up for the Nuggets at Summer League.

“I would have been here anyway,” Braun told The Denver Post. “That was always the plan. … I need to be around these guys. I need to be around the coaches. I’m still young. I’ve played a lot of minutes, but I’m still young. So I need to be out here either way, and Parker being out here is pretty cool.”

Indeed, Braun has accomplished more than most non-lottery picks do in their first two years as an NBA player. It’s why he’s been widely projected (including by general manager Calvin Booth) to replace Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the Nuggets’ starting lineup next season, as they prepare to fend without their killer five-man unit for the first time since winning the 2023 championship.

But Braun won’t allow himself to assume the job is his.

“I’ve gotta go take it. It’s not written in that I’m gonna be the starter, and I don’t approach it that way. I never will,” Braun told The Post. “… I need to go prove myself again and again. I haven’t done anything in this league yet. I know we won the championship, but I still have so much more to do, so much more to offer, to give. I think that lineup fits me really well — but it fits a lot of people really well. So like I said, I’ve gotta go take it. I’ve gotta go earn it this summer. I’ve gotta go earn it in training camp. That’s the way I’m approaching it.”

By the time Caldwell-Pope agreed to his three-year, $66 million deal with the Orlando Magic, most of his teammates back in Denver already had a sense that he would be moving on in free agency. As compelling as the opportunity is for Braun to take the next step in his career, the loss of KCP was still bittersweet.

“My initial reaction was just, I’m grateful for him. I’m grateful for the time that we had together to play together,” Braun said. “He taught me a lot. Obviously, we play the same position, so he showed me a lot of different things, whether it was defensively, offensively. I got to spend time with him. He’s very welcoming. His family was always great to me. So just appreciative. And then obviously it was really cool to see him go sign that deal and take care of his family.”

Caldwell-Pope was a quintessential 3-and-D starter in Denver, where he won his second championship. He often shouldered the most challenging defensive assignment in any given game, matching up against the opponent’s top scoring guard, fighting through screens with seemingly endless stamina, playing almost every game.

If Braun is to replace him, dependability and consistency will be core tenets of the job. His trial run last season included appearing in all 82 games as an NBA sophomore.

“We have a lot of similarities, I think,” he said. “Defensively, kind of being pests. Offensively, we both fit alongside Nikola. And it’s the reason we were brought in. I was brought in to play with those guys, and so was he. … I think I’m gonna do a great job the same way he did a great job. And I’m excited for that. I’m excited for the opportunity to, like I said, go out and earn it.”

In philosophical unison with Braun, Nuggets coach Michael Malone said Friday night on ESPN, “I’m not giving that spot to anybody. It’s going to be a competition.” That’s a fairly typical stance for a coach to take when a starting job is up for grabs. But who could challenge Braun for this one? There’s Julian Strawther, who’s a year behind Braun in experience. He was Denver’s best player in the Summer League opener, amassing 25 points and five rebounds while playing more assertively on the ball. But his point-of-attack defense isn’t at Braun’s level, and he shot just 29.7% from 3-point range as a rookie, an area that must improve regardless of his role.

Denver also has an open roster spot, which will likely be filled by a guard. Chemistry with Nikola Jokic is essential, both as an off-ball offensive threat and as a defensive partner in pick-and-roll coverage.

“I think even offensively, we have good chemistry. But the defensive part I don’t think is gonna be a big difference or a change,” Braun said. “I think they know what to expect from me, and I think that especially at the end of the year in that last series, I think everybody saw what I was capable of.”

His confidence in that area is warranted. With Braun’s strength and tenacity, he fits the profile of a lead defender who can guard bigger ball-dominant players. He already showed signs of leveling up during the playoffs, when he was Denver’s most effective matchup against Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards.

But the Nuggets ultimately lost the series in a heartbreaking Game 7. Braun took the loss as hard as anyone in the locker room — losing almost felt like a foreign experience for him. As a rookie, he won the NBA championship. The previous year, he won the NCAA title at Kansas.

“I never want to lose. I don’t want to lose,” he said Friday, reflecting on Denver’s 20-point collapse. “You’re not gonna win every year, I understand that. But we’ve just gotta bounce back. We’ve gotta get better. All of us. Individually, I need to go get better. The team needs to get better as a unit. We need to be more hungry. I think that loss should motivate us. Could be good for us going into this year. You don’t want it to happen that way. And we got beat fair and square, obviously. But I think we had a good opportunity, especially being up that many points in a Game 7. You don’t lose that game very often. And we did.

“I think it could be a good thing for us, if we use it the right way.”

For Braun individually, it’ll remain forever on his mind. For now, it’ll fester as a second source of motivation to pair with the notion that he’s not a Denver Nuggets starter until he’s earned it.

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Holmes was seen leaving UNLV’s Cox Pavilion on crutches after Denver’s 88-78 loss to the Clippers, a Summer League debut in which he amassed 11 points and seven rebounds. He made all three of his 3-point attempts.

The Nuggets traded up six spots in the NBA draft to select Holmes 22nd overall this year. He was their top target throughout the pre-draft process, viewed as a potential plug-and-play backup big man who could provide vital frontcourt depth behind three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.

After an awkward landing with about 4:15 remaining, Holmes limped off the court without any help but with barely any weight on his right leg. Trainers tended to him behind the bleachers of the small gymnasium attached to UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center for the remainder of the game.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone, who’s overseeing but not actively coaching the Summer League team this weekend, was called over from his court-side seat before the final buzzer. Teammates approached Holmes to check on him and offer words of comfort after they shook hands with the Clippers and left the court.

“I just told him that — we don’t know, exactly — but I’ll be praying for him,” Hunter Tyson said.

“Obviously he’s new around here, but he just brings such a positive energy,” Julian Strawther said. “So just being able to reciprocate that energy for him (was important).”

Holmes’ parents and agent were also in attendance for what had been an encouraging Nuggets debut before the injury. As Summer League coach Andrew Munson pointed out after the loss, “we really missed his rebounding obviously down the stretch.” The Clippers scored 11 second-chance points in the last 4:07 after Holmes went down.

He had a strong week of minicamp going into the Summer League opener as well, according to team staff. Malone pulled him aside on the first day of practice after sensing Holmes was putting pressure on himself to not make mistakes. “I’ve seen a noticeable improvement because I think he’s relaxed, he’s letting the game come to him, he’s not trying to do too much and just playing his game,” Malone said two days later. “And if he does that, he’s gonna have a chance to have a very great impact this summer.”

At Dayton, Holmes averaged 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists last season in his third and final year of college basketball. He was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.

“I don’t think all rookies are made the same,” Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth said after the draft. “I think you have the 18- or 19-year-old guys that may or may not have more upside. And then you have some other guys that are accomplished, that do a lot and for all intents and purposes may be more ready for high-pressure NBA games than some guys on NBA rosters, that have been in the league for two or three years. In that sense, I think DaRon is one of those guys. Has a high IQ. Knows how to play in different styles and different scenarios.”

Without the rookie, Denver’s frontcourt behind Jokic loses some of its flexibility. Dario Saric is the only true newcomer to the roster other than Holmes, but the Nuggets are also getting Vlatko Cancar back from a torn ACL. Zeke Nnaji is entering the first season of his four-year, $32 million rookie extension after he was in and out of the rotation last year, mostly as a backup center.

The Nuggets can attempt to create a disabled player exception for Holmes this season, like they did with Cancar in 2023-24, but that would not provide them with an extra roster spot.

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It was the first day of minicamp for the Nuggets’ Summer League team. Munson has worked closely with Malone for almost nine years, first as a video intern and now as Denver’s special assistant to the head coach. But Summer League is a time for aspiring coaches to get reps, too — not just burgeoning players. The Nuggets have handed Munson the head coach’s whistle for the next couple of weeks.

So he used it.

“He showed me a little Coach Mo-esque timeout,” Julian Strawther said.

Translation: a really angry timeout.

“We had a loose ball, and nobody got on the floor,” Munson said, shrugging. “We didn’t fly around like we’re supposed to. … I’ve been watching (Malone) for nine years, so I’ve got a good idea of how to do it.”

He doesn’t anticipate needing to call more of those timeouts once the games begin Friday in Las Vegas, considering the surplus of young enthusiasm brandished by the Nuggets, from their 15-man roster to their two-way and Exhibit 10 contracts. Still, Munson did admit after the rage timeout: “It felt pretty good. I get it now. I get it.”

Results in Summer League are always somewhat trivial, but the upcoming games should be informative for an organization relying heavily on youth. This marks the first opportunity to see first-round draft pick DaRon Holmes II compete as a Nugget, along with two-way signings Trey Alexander and PJ Hall. It also represents a progress report for second-year players Strawther, Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson, at least one of whom has a strong chance to become an everyday rotation player next season.

Munson will be the Makeshift Malone running the show.

“I’m just grateful for the opportunity from Coach Malone and Calvin (Booth), letting me do this,” he said. “… As an assistant coach, you have all these grand ideas in your head. ‘I want to do this,’ and ‘We’re gonna do that.’ All of that. So now I’m in the position of: ‘Well, that didn’t work very well,’ or ‘Maybe I need to rethink that.’ So it’s just exciting to try some ideas maybe I’ve had, see how they work.”

Player to watch: Julian Strawther

Strawther knows as well as anyone: The loss of a starter at his position, while painful for Denver to absorb, means “there’s a lot of opportunity for the taking.”

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s departure in free agency has mostly been dissected through the lens of how Christian Braun fits into the starting unit. But arguably just as important is the subsequent domino. Strawther is next in line to be the Nuggets’ second-string shooting guard. He was the most-used of Denver’s three rookies last season, and now he seems to be the most likely of the trio to enter the rotation on a regular basis.

Obviously, his shot needs to improve in 2024-25. The former Gonzaga sniper was only 29.7% from beyond the arc as a rookie. But he and the Nuggets have broader intentions for his development than just catching and shooting.

“He has the ability to put the ball on the floor. He attacks close-outs,” Malone said. “When we drafted him, we knew that he was a great midrange shooter. … But we want to expand his game. We feel that he’s a guy in today’s NBA that can play the one. You think about his past year. We had so many different guys try to fill that position of being a backup point guard. And we think Julian has all the tools, as he continues to work on that, not to be a full-time point guard, but to be a guy we can play second-side pick-and-roll with, be a secondary ball-handler. Because we do not have a lot of that.”

Strawther has stayed in Denver most of the offseason so far. He’s been a near-daily presence in the practice gym at Ball Arena, where the coaching staff’s emphasis has been on expansion as much as refinement.

“I think he’s a little more advanced (as a ball-handler) than you guys have seen,” Munson said. “In the regular season, he’s mostly off the ball. The guy’s really talented. He’s a talented shooter, but also a scorer, play-maker.”

Look for Strawther to explore and experiment with his skill set in Vegas. He’ll be the most imminently relevant player on the floor for Denver.

“It’s always a fine line in Summer League,” Munson said. “They’ve got a bigger opportunity (than usual). So they’re gonna have the ball and do more things. But you also want to take little pieces of, ‘Oh hey, Julian’s going to do that when he’s with Nikola (Jokic). Hunter’s going to make that cut when he’s with Nikola.’ Are they seeing those things? Are they making those plays?”

Other storylines

Jalen Pickett: The Nuggets are still seeking point guard depth in free agency, but Pickett also has an opportunity to earn increased playing time as he enters his second year. Munson plans to put him in a lot of pick-and-roll reps at Summer League. The Nuggets can also cultivate Pickett’s unorthodox game by getting him the ball at the elbows or in the post, where he can be a cunning distributor.

“We want to see him run this team,” Munson said. “I could call a play down every time if I want, but I’d like to see Jalen kind of take control. Get everyone organized. ‘Hey, Julian’s got 20. He’s made four 3s. Let’s run some action for him.’ Same thing for Hunter. Just be Jalen Pickett.”

College roomies: The Nuggets forfeited the 56th overall pick this year when they traded up six spots to draft Holmes. One of the players they were strongly considering at No. 56, according to a league source, was PJ Hall, who ended up in Denver anyway as an undrafted free agent. Hall led Clemson to the Elite Eight in March. Before that, and more pertinently, he and Hunter Tyson were college roommates. They should have chances to rekindle their on-court chemistry at Summer League. Could Hall become this year’s Collin Gillespie for the Nuggets, earning solid NBA minutes on a two-way contract? Or might that be Creighton’s Trey Alexander, who left a strong first impression on coaches at mini-camp?

Family affair: Denver brought in some familiar names to play Summer League ball this year. Parker Braun is the older brother of Christian, another Kansas basketball alum. And Walter Ellis of Grand Canyon University is the son of former Nuggets player LaPhonso Ellis.

Interestingly, none of the 14 players on the Summer League roster are listed as centers. It’s officially all guards and forwards for Denver, with Braun standing tallest at 6-foot-10.

Projected starting lineup: Jalen Pickett (PG), Julian Strawther (SG), Hunter Tyson (SF), PJ Hall (PF), DaRon Holmes II (C); sixth man Trey Alexander

Nuggets Summer League schedule (fifth game TBA)

July 12 (Friday): Nuggets vs. Clippers, 8 p.m. MT, Altitude TV

July 14 (Sunday): Nuggets vs. Raptors, 7:30 p.m. MT, Altitude TV

July 16 (Tuesday): Nuggets vs. Hornets, 4 p.m. MT, Altitude TV/ESPN 2

July 18 (Thursday): Nuggets vs. Pacers, 2:30 p.m. MT, Altitude TV/ESPN 2

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