Nuggets Roundtable: Instant reaction to Aaron Gordon's extension

The Nuggets and Aaron Gordon have agreed to a four-year, $92 million extension that will keeps the forward in Denver for the foreseeable future.

Here’s what the DNVR Nuggets crew thinks of the deal.

What was your initial reaction to the extension?

Harrison: $92 million is a lot for Aaron Gordon….if you’re a middling non-contender. If you’re the Nuggets, a contender who saw last season immediately following the trade deadline that Gordon was the perfect fit next to Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr., then it’s a fine deal. The Nuggets think they can win a championship with Gordon alongside Jokic, Murray, Porter, Barton and a strong bench. And they’re right for thinking that after looking like arguably the best team in the league after acquiring Gordon in late-March.

With Gordon extended and Porter’s rookie extension due next (I’d be stunned if it didn’t get done before the seasons starts), the Nuggets will soon have all five starters under contract for the next two years. Denver signed both Barton and Jeff Green to two-year deals this offseason. JaMychal Green came back on a 1-year contract with a player option. If the Nuggets have to pivot after this two-year window they should be able to, but for now Tim Connelly is betting that this group can contend for the championship.

The extension getting done wasn’t surprising by any means. When you’re a contender like the Nuggets, you pay — or even overpay a bit — for a piece like Gordon who fits so well around your core. You don’t risk losing him over a few million here or there. The Nuggets don’t seem scared to go into the luxury tax starting in the 2021-22 season either. Good.

Gordon also really enjoyed being in Denver over the second half of last season and playing in an offense around Jokic. If Gordon’s chill with a more reduced offensive role than the one he had in Orlando but heightened defensive responsibility because it’s what the Nuggets need from him, then this should be a happy marriage.

Adam: That the Nuggets really believe in their core. This is an all-in move by Tim Connelly and the front office as well as by the Kroenkes. There is almost no avoiding the luxury tax over the next several seasons now that Gordon’s salary is locked in for the next four years. Sure, the Nuggets can make trades down the line if this core group of Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon don’t work out but even with a trade they are still set up to be a tax team for as long as one can peer into the future.

That alone is exciting. This is the most the ownership group has signaled that winning is truly important to them. And their willingness to pull the trigger right now shows everyone just how much they believe in the team, culture, and roster that they have assembled.

The window for the Denver Nuggets opened up a season ago inside of the bubble when Jamal Murray made a leap towards superstardom. It opened a bit wider when Michael Porter Jr. followed in his footsteps this last season. But it is officially wide open now with the all-in commitment from the Kroenkes.

Brendan: It’s more than I expected after Mike Singer of the Denver Post reported the number could be closer to 20 per, and the deal could be as short as two years. But that it’s a probable overpay on an open market shouldn’t be of consequence for Denver. A team friendlier deal would have been better in the event of a catastrophe. This deal is, of course, harder to move off of than the reported shorter and smaller options should things go awry — but Denver expects this to work. Gordon was their tabbed complementary piece to the core trio, and should the partnership continue to flourish, the extra money spent is a Kroenke problem, not a Connelly problem. The Nuggets have entered the ‘pay the tax’ phase of contender building — meaning the difference between an overpay, and a lousy contract widens if ownership is willing to open up the wallet. I’m treating this news as a good sign they’ll do just that.

Of course, this will beg many questions regarding Michael Porter Jr.’s extension, so let’s address the implications. Extending Gordon first changes nothing if the Kroneke’s are ready to pay for a contender. We expect Porter to command a pretty penny regardless of the market or Denver’s cap sheet, and the Nuggets have complete control over where he begins his next deal. If anything, this should build your confidence in the Nuggets’ desire to keep this group together. If you believe in that starting five after the trade deadline — and you should — then Denver did well today. They’re one step closer to locking in a formidable core four.

Finally, this extension serves as further evidence that Gordon loved his half-season in Denver. Not just playing in a Nuggets uniform, but the particular role he carved out for himself. The Nuggets are paying Gordon — and likely paying up — to do a lot of the dirty work, and make fewer glamorous contributions. His willingness to re-up serves as a welcome pallet cleanser for the nasty taste left in our mouths when Jerami Grant took the opposite approach. Denver teetered on disastrous territory in each of the last two offseasons, but Connelly found a way to steady the ship.