The Denver Nuggets and swingman Christian Braun have agreed to a five-year, $125 million rookie contract extension, according to Shams Charania of ESPN.
Braun, 24, has turned into a developmental gem for the Nuggets after being the 21st pick in the 2022 NBA Draft and a player who entered the league without a defined role. His agent, Bill Duffy of WME Basketball, negotiated this contract extension that keeps Braun as an integral part of the Nuggets' core through the 2030-31 season.
When he began his career with the Nuggets, Braun was viewed as an undersized shooting guard who possessed a high IQ on the floor but needed time to develop into a two-way threat.
Now, as he prepares for his fourth season with Denver, Braun finds himself as one of the Nuggets' most reliable players alongside Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, and he becomes the fifth player on their roster with a cap hit of at least $20 million for the 2026-27 NBA season.
Although the Nuggets could have waited to lock in Braun on a new long-term contract, executives Ben Tenzer and Jon Wallace made it a priority to get a contract done with their young, talented guard before the 2025-26 season began.
Not only did they want to get it out of the way now before Braun became a restricted free agent, but the Nuggets also have more pressing matters to attend to next offseason with Nikola Jokic. This offseason, Jokic declined a $212 million contract extension from Denver since he can earn more money by waiting.
Neither Jokic nor the Nuggets are concerned about a new deal for the three-time MVP being put on hold.
Leading up to Monday evening's extension deadline for Braun, the Nuggets had been in deep discussions with him and Duffy about finding common ground on a new deal.
The two parties held negotiations throughout the weekend, where it became clear a deal would likely be reached before the deadline to do so, league sources told ClutchPoints. Given his value as a contributing factor on both ends of the floor, Braun is a player Tenzer and Wallace made it clear they held no interest in seeing depart the organization any time soon.
Before this extension was officially agreed to on Monday, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reported that Braun and his representation were centered on a five-year deal in the ballpark of $115-$125 million. Ultimately, Braun got what he wanted: a five-year, $125 million extension to keep him as one of the young faces of the franchise.
The Nuggets now enter the 2025-26 season with their core group pleased and ready to contend for another title.
In 79 games last season, 77 of which he started, Braun averaged 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 58.0 percent from the floor and 39.7 percent from 3-point range.
