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Nuggets sign rookie Collin Gillespie to two-way contract

The Denver Nuggets have signed rookie guard Collin Gillespie to a two-way contract, General Manager Calvin Booth announced today.

Gillespie, 6-3, 195, appeared in 156 games (125 starts) in five seasons at Villanova University, averaging 11.9 points, 3.1 assists and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 42.2% from the field and 38.7% from three in 29.0 minutes per game. Gillespie earned the 2021-22 Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard, helping to guide the Wildcats to the NCAA Final Four after recovering from a knee injury that ended his 2021 season prematurely. He ended his career at Villanova with a National Championship (2018), two Final Four appearances and two Big East Player of the Year awards.

The Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania native, went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft. Gillespie will appear on Denver’s 2022 Las Vegas Summer League entry and will wear #21 for the Nuggets.

Nikola Jokic to sign huge Nuggets contract extension

Via ESPN.com:

Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic has agreed to the largest contract in NBA history — a five-year, $270 million supermax extension, his agents, Jeff Schwartz and Mike Lindeman of Excel Sports, told ESPN on Friday.

Jokic, the two-time reigning Most Valuable Player, is now secured to the Nuggets for a total of six seasons for $303 million.

The deal includes a player option and a trade kicker. The contract will kick in during the 2023-24 season at $46.6 million and climb every season until 2027-28, when Jokic is set to make $61.5 million.

Nuggets trade JaMychal Green to Thunder

The Oklahoma City Thunder has acquired forward JaMychal Green and a protected 2027 first-round draft pick from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for the draft rights to Peyton Watson, the 30th overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, and two future second-round draft picks.

Green (6-8, 227) has appeared in 487 career games (165 starts) and posted averages of 7.9 points on 47.2 percent shooting to go along with 5.7 rebounds in 20.8 minutes per game. The Alabama native has played for the San Antonio Spurs, Memphis Grizzlies, LA Clippers and Denver during his nine-year NBA career.

Watson, 6-8, 200, played in 32 games, averaging 3.3 and 2.9 rebounds in 12.7 minutes per game for UCLA as a freshman. He was named to the honorable mention Pac-12 All-Freshman Team and ranked second on the team in blocked shots (19). He also helped lead the USA Men’s Basketball U19 Team to the gold medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup in July 2021.

Minnesota Timberwolves name Tim Connelly as President of Basketball Operations

The Minnesota Timberwolves today named Tim Connelly as the team’s President of Basketball Operations.

Connelly will oversee and assume responsibility for all decisions made within the Timberwolves basketball operations department.

“We are thrilled to announce Tim Connelly as the next leader of our basketball operations department and welcome his family to the Twin Cities,” said Timberwolves Ownership. “He brings a wealth of NBA front office experience with various franchises. We look forward to building upon our most recent playoff run and bringing more success to Timberwolves fans for years to come.”

Connelly, 45, comes to Minnesota after spending nine years with the Denver Nuggets, the last five as President of Basketball Operations where he led all facets of basketball operations for the franchise, guiding the Nuggets to one of the most successful runs in team history. He came to Denver in July of 2013, serving as General Manager and Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations before being named President of Basketball Operations.

“My family and I couldn’t be more excited to join the Timberwolves organization,” said Connelly. “I appreciate Glen, Becky, Marc and Alex’s confidence in me to lead this organization and I can’t wait to get to work to build an elite franchise that our fans can continue to be proud of.”

“We are excited to welcome Tim and his wife, Negah, along with their children to our Timberwolves family,” said Timberwolves and Lynx Chief Executive Officer Ethan Casson. “This is such an important hire for the organization and our fans, we are confident that Tim’s leadership will be a major part of our continued growth and future success.”

During his tenure with the Nuggets, the team captured two Northwest Division titles (2018-19 and 2019-20), marking the first time since 2008-09 and 2009-10 that the franchise repeated as division champions and just the fifth time in Northwest Division history there was a repeat winner. Denver would advance to the Western Conference Finals in 2020 for the first time since 2009. Over the past nine years, Connelly built up the team’s roster through numerous successful draft selections that would help transform Denver into one of the premier teams in the Western Conference. Those included the selection of the 2021-22 and 2020-21 NBA MVP Nikola Jokic with the 41st pick of the second round in 2014 as well as Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., and Monte Morris.

Connelly will work closely with Timberwolves Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Sachin Gupta, as well as Head Coach Chris Finch, whom Connelly worked with in Denver during the 2016-17 season. In addition, Connelly worked with Wolves Assistant Coach Micah Nori in Denver from 2015-18 and was responsible for drafting current Wolves guard Malik Beasley and forward Jarred Vanderbilt while in Denver.

Connelly’s past experiences include working as Assistant General Manager for three seasons with the New Orleans Hornets franchise, as well as spending 10 years with the Washington Wizards organization where he rose from an intern in 1996 to eventually being named Director of Player Personnel. With the Wizards, his role included overseeing scouting, salary cap and database management, player evaluation responsibilities, as well as assisting the vice president of player personnel with all front office duties.

Connelly has served as a coach on numerous occasions as part of the NBA’s “Basketball Without Borders” program. He has also served on the board of GEN Basketball Academy, a Sarajevo-based academy funded by NATO, and has assisted with their youth camps.

A native of Baltimore, Connelly graduated from Catholic University in 1999.

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic wins 2021-22 NBA MVP award

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić has been named the 2021-22 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player, the NBA announced today.

This is the second Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award for Jokić, who also earned the honor last season. He becomes the 13th player to win the award in consecutive seasons, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain, Stephen Curry, Tim Duncan, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Moses Malone, Steve Nash and Bill Russell.

Jokić received 875 points (65 first-place votes) from a global panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters. Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid finished in second place with 706 points (26 first-place votes). Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo finished in third place with 595 points (nine first-place votes), followed by Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker in fourth place with 216 points and Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Dončić in fifth place with 146 points. Players received 10 points for each first-place vote, seven points for each second-place vote, five points for each third-place vote, three points for each fourth-place vote and one point for each fifth-place vote.

This is the first time that both the top three and four of the top five finishers in voting for the Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award are international players, with Jokić (Serbia), Embiid (Cameroon) and Antetokounmpo (Greece) comprising the top three and Dončić (Slovenia) joining them in the top five. Jokić is the second European player to win the award more than once, joining Antetokounmpo, the MVP in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.

In his seventh NBA season, Jokić averaged 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, 7.9 assists, 1.47 steals and 0.85 blocks per game, setting career highs in each category except assists (second highest). Jokić, who played 74 games and averaged 33.5 minutes, ranked sixth in the NBA in points, second in rebounds, eighth in assists, 12th steals and 33rd in blocks per game. He led the league in total rebounds (1,019) and total defensive rebounds (813). His career-high 58.3 field goal percentage was eighth highest in the NBA.

Jokić, 27, became the first player in NBA history to record at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists in a season and the first player to average at least 25.0 points, 13.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists in a season. He led the NBA in triple-doubles with 19 and double-doubles with 66, both single-season records for a Nuggets player.

Jokić earned his fourth consecutive NBA All-Star selection and second straight All-Star start. He twice was named the Kia NBA Western Conference Player of the Month (January and March/April) and the NBA Western Conference Player of the Week (Jan. 24 and April 4).

Behind Jokić, the Nuggets (48-34) qualified for the NBA Playoffs presented by Google Pixel for the fourth consecutive season. With Denver trying to clinch a playoff spot late in the season, Jokić averaged 35.7 points, 16.3 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 2.14 steals in his final seven games.

The Nuggets selected Jokić with the 41st overall pick during the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft. Last season, he became the lowest-drafted player to win the Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award with the exception of three-time recipient Moses Malone, who was not selected in the NBA Draft.

Jokić will be presented with a special edition 75th Anniversary commemorative trophy today in celebration of the honor, gifted in addition to the Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award trophy, which he will receive later. The commemorative trophy, composed of a solid crystal basketball, features the NBA 75 logo 3D laser etched and suspended within its center.

Nikola Jokic will reportedly win the 2021-22 NBA MVP award

Via the Denver Post:

The 2021-22 season hadn’t even formally started when Nikola Jokic set the tone for how he planned to handle the unwanted MVP inquiries lobbed in his direction.

Leaning up against a wall in the bowels of Ball Arena ahead of Denver’s season opener at Phoenix, Jokic said he “couldn’t care less,” about his status as the reigning MVP. Indifferent to the award, Jokic, nonetheless, returned this season an even more dominant version of himself, plowing through opponents and picking apart defenses like Peyton Manning, the Hall of Fame quarterback who likes to frequent Nuggets games.

Jokic will be named league MVP for the second consecutive season, a league source confirmed Monday, becoming only the fifth center to win in back-to-back years and only the 13th player in NBA history to earn the award in consecutive seasons.

Jokic learned he’d won the award on Monday, the source said, and a formal announcement is expected later this week.

The latest on injured Nuggets Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray

The Denver Nuggets haven’t been at full strength this season. Here’s the Denver Post with the latest on a few of their key injured players:

Just like every hopeful Nuggets fan, Will Barton has allowed his mind to wander.

As good as the Nuggets are (25-12 since Jan. 1), Barton knows what the potential returns of Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray could mean for the Nuggets during the playoffs.

Six months into the season, depending on their returns, his workload could get significantly lighter. And in turn, the Nuggets could level up from a dangerous postseason matchup to a deep, multifaceted offense.

“Of course,” he told The Denver Post. “You can’t shy away from that.

“Obviously, we’re missing two great players. We’ll welcome them back, but we gotta focus on what’s going on in the present. … When we get the word that they’re coming back, we’ll take it from there.”

Porter, it appears, is trending closer to a return than Murray following back surgery on Dec. 1.

Nuggets sign DeMarcus Cousins for remainder of NBA season

The Denver Nuggets have signed center DeMarcus Cousins for the remainder of the season, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Cousins, 6-10, 270, has appeared in eight games with Denver this season, averaging 6.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 13.1 minutes per game while helping the Nuggets to a perfect 8-0 record in those games. He previously appeared in 17 games (five starts) for the Milwaukee Bucks this season, averaging 9.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 46.6% from the field in 16.9 minutes per game. Cousins scored 10+ points in six games and posted two double-doubles in his stint with Milwaukee.

The 10-year NBA veteran has played in 631 career games (559 starts) with Sacramento, New Orleans, Golden State, Houston, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee and Denver, holding career averages of 19.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks in 30.4 minutes per game. Cousins has reached the playoffs twice, in 2019 and 2021, appearing in 15 games (five starts), averaging 7.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 12.7 minutes.

The fifth overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Cousins was selected to four all-star games as a member of the Sacramento Kings (2015-17) and New Orleans Pelicans (2018). He was also named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2015 and 2016 and he was a gold medal winner for the United States in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, as well as the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Nuggets sign DeMarcus Cousins to 10-day contract

The Denver Nuggets have signed center DeMarcus Cousins to a 10-day contract, President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.

Cousins, 6-10, 270, has appeared in five games with Denver this season, averaging 6.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 13.2 minutes per game while helping the Nuggets to a 5-0 record in those games. He previously appeared in 17 games (five starts) for the Milwaukee Bucks this season, averaging 9.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 46.6% from the field in 16.9 minutes per game. Cousins scored 10+ points in six games and posted two double-doubles in his stint with Milwaukee.

The 10-year NBA veteran has played in 628 career games (559 starts) with Sacramento, New Orleans, Golden State, Houston, Los Angeles Clippers, Milwaukee and Denver, holding career averages of 20.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks in 30.5 minutes per game. Cousins has reached the playoffs twice, in 2019 and 2021, appearing in 15 games (five starts), averaging 7.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 12.7 minutes.

The fifth overall pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Cousins was selected to four all-star games as a member of the Sacramento Kings (2015-17) and New Orleans Pelicans (2018). He was also named to the All-NBA Second Team in 2015 and 2016 and he was a gold medal winner for the United States in the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, as well as the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Nuggets reportedly looking to add a perimeter defender

Here’s the Denver Post on what the Nuggets might be looking to accomplish in the next day:

The Nuggets are actively in search of a perimeter defender ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline, sources told The Denver Post.

The major obstacle they’ve run into has been their available trade chips and, specifically, the aggregate contracts they’d use to acquire such a defender, one source said. The goal, with next season in mind as well, has always been to land a player who wouldn’t be just a rental.

The Nuggets are 30-24 this season, which is the sixth best record in the Western conference.