Jeff Green, DeAndre Jordan, and Ish Smith all got their first championship rings with the Denver Nuggets in 2023. They were all in their 30s and the twilight of their respective careers.
Their success in Denver — all three are still playing and Green even parlayed his championship run into a significant pay bump — should have been a signal to all fellow Ring Chasers around the NBA: Denver is the perfect place to spend a year (or two) if you’re a veteran and want to be on a championship team.
To qualify as a Ring Chaser: Must be above 30 years old and potentially in line for a minimum contract from a contending team.
(My 10 fake trades and 10 minimum contract free agents for the Nuggets can be found here.)
Here we go.
Gary Harris
Age next season: 30
Role: Rotation
I’m not sure what Harris’ market will be this summer. He’s a free agent and coming off a season where he averaged 24 minutes in 54 games. But he still comes with a serious injury risk. Maybe Harris is out of the Nuggets’ price range but maybe he’s not. Harris can still shoot the 3 and defend. He’d bring two-way stability to Denver’s second unit.
Gordon Hayward
Age next season: 34
Role: Rotation
Hayward landed in Oklahoma City at the trade deadline and was supposed to steady the Thunder’s bench rotation but didn’t find much success. He averaged 17 minutes in 26 games at the end of the regular season but then fell out of the rotation during a second-round loss to the Clippers and failed to score a single point in 46 total playoff minutes (0-3 shooting). But I think there’s still good basketball here. He posted solid numbers in Charlotte to start the year — 14.5 points per game on shooting efficiency that was in line with his career averages. I know there are people within the Nuggets who are fans of Hayward.
Kevin Love
Age next season: 36
Role: Rotation
Love has a player option for $4 million next season and I bet he returns to the Heat, but he can still play and would be a great fit in the Nuggets’ frontcourt. Denver’s second unit got killed on the glass this season. Love’s rebounding would be a godsend for that group.
Jae Crowder
Age next season: 34
Role: Fringe rotation
Crowder averaged 23 minutes per game for Milwaukee but then saw his playing time drop considerably in the playoffs. He didn’t play great in the postseason either. Still, Crowder is a respected veteran — he did get into an altercation with Nikola Jokic years ago when he played for the Jazz — and might have a couple of seasons left in him. Crowder comes with toughness, a streaky 3-point shot, and respectable individual defense.
Thaddeus Young
Age next season: 36
Role: Benchwarmer
Backup center alert. Young started this season in Toronto and then signed with Phoenix in the buyout market. He wasn’t a factor or into the rotation during the Suns’ first-round playoff loss, however. I don’t think Young is good anymore. He’s never had much of an offensive game, although he’s not a bad passer, and now is strictly a defender and rebounder. If he was in Denver, Young would probably be about as playable as DeAndre Jordan has been. Maybe less.
Danilo Gallinari
Age next season: 36
Role: Fringe rotation
Gallinari is on his last legs and hasn’t averaged more than 15 minutes per game in a season since 2022. He’s someone who could give you occasional rotation minutes and has some select offensive spurts in him, but I can’t see Gallinari holding down a full-time rotation spot on the Nuggets or any playoff-caliber team next season. He’d be a depth piece.
Wesley Matthews
Age next season: 38
Role: Benchwarmer
Matthews has been known throughout his career as a sharpshooter, but he hasn’t shot above 36% from 3-point range across an entire season since 2020 with the Bucks. He was in and out of the rotation for most of this season in Atlanta and would be in for a reduced role with the Nuggets.
Patty Mills
Age next season: 36
Role: Benchwarmer
Mills would take on an Ish Smith-type of role with the Nuggets. He probably wouldn’t play much but could give you a capable game every now and then if he had to step into the rotation due to an injury.
TJ Warren
Age next season: 31
Role: Fringe rotation
Warren can give you a few good minutes here and there, but he’s not someone who can be counted on for consistent production anymore. He only appeared in 11 games for the Timberwolves this season. Warren did have some decent moments but is a far cry from the professional scorer that he used to be.
Taj Gibson
Age: 38
Role: Benchwarmer
Gibson can’t handle a ton of minutes anymore and only logged 10+ minutes in 10 games this season. He’d bring physicality, toughness, and veteran leadership. Gibson would be a Michael Malone favorite.
