Restricted free agent Mason Plumlee has agreed to a three-year, $41 million deal to return to the Denver Nuggets, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
Plumlee's contract is equivalent to the sum big man Tyler Zeller — his counterpart at the center position — received from the Brooklyn Nets a week ago, setting precedent for his market price, according to ESPN Insider Bobby Marks.
The 27-year-old will play backup to Nikola Jokic and see some minutes as a dual tower tandem when head coach Mike Malone chooses to head down that path.
Plumlee was first acquired from Portland in a February deal for center Jusuf Nurkic. The Duke standout has averaged 9.0 and 6.5 rebound in four seasons with Brooklyn, Portland and Denver.
By securing Plumlee's contract, the team avoided signing him to a $4.6 million qualifying offer for the 2017-18 season, an option which would have allowed him to become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.
The move will put Denver at $103.2 million in salary, ranked 20th in the league. The Nuggets finished 28th in salary last season.
Denver is also at the $96 million mark for salaries in 2018-19, not including key restricted free agents Gary Harris and Nikola Jokic, per Marks. The two rising stars are sure to play a part in the organization's future.
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