The Denver Nuggets have won their first title in team history after defeating the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals. Nikola Jokic, as expected, won the Finals MVP award and Jamal Murray was right behind him in terms of leading Denver to a title, but Bruce Brown was truly one of the unsung heroes of the Nuggets' championship run.
Signing a two-year, $13.3 million deal with Denver last offseason, Brown immediately provided value given his abilities to facilitate on offense, defend at a high-level and be another capable three-point shooter coming off the bench. Without him, the Nuggets may not have been in the position they find themselves now, which is why Brown is going to be entering the offseason with an increased payday on the horizon.
Owning a $6.8 million player option he will have to make a decision on before June 21, Brown could become an unrestricted free agent this summer. Should he opt out of his deal and become a free agent though, other teams may have a hard time pursuing the Nuggets' swingman, especially given his interest in remaining with the team.
“I want to stay. Look at us. Celebrating the Finals, winning the Finals. This is what you come to the NBA for, to win at the highest level,” Brown told Mike Singer from the Denver Post after the team's championship win on Monday night. “It’s a perfect fit. And money is not everything. The money will come. So I’m not worried about that right now.”
If he was to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason, the most the Nuggets could offer Brown is $7.7 million this upcoming year. Every NBA player obviously cares about their contract and the monetary value associated with it, but Brown truly loves being in Denver and he may be willing to sacrifice money from another team to compete for more titles.
When looking at the Nuggets as a whole, the biggest thing that stands out about this team is that nobody is going anywhere anytime soon. Their core of Jokic, Murray, Aaron Gordon, Michael Porter Jr. and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are under contract together for at least two more seasons and both Christian Braun and Peyton Watson are on rookie-scale deals. Ish Smith, Jeff Green, DeAndre Jordan and even Reggie Jackson could all be brought back on veteran-minimum deals as well, so it is safe to assume Denver will be running things back heading into the 2023-24 season.
This is a special organization with a special group of guys that can sit atop the NBA rankings for many years to come. Brown recognizes this, which is why the idea of him leaving and chasing money from another team does not seem too relevant this upcoming free agency period.