Bruce Brown’s NBA journey since lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy with the Denver Nuggets in 2023 has been anything but linear - and now, with the benefit of hindsight, he’s not shy about admitting he wishes he’d stayed put.
After playing a pivotal role in the Nuggets’ championship run, Brown had no shortage of suitors in free agency. Among them?
The Los Angeles Lakers, who offered him a starting role and a three-year, $50 million contract. That offer, according to Brown, nearly sealed the deal.
“I was going to the Lakers after the championship,” Brown recently shared. “They called me right when free agency started.
Darvin Ham was the coach, and they wanted me to be the starting point guard. I’ve got LeBron, I’ve got AD, they just made the Western Conference Finals - I want to win again.”
From Brown’s perspective, the Lakers’ pitch was simple and compelling: facilitate, defend, and let the stars cook. It wasn’t a stretch from what he’d been doing in Denver - playing within himself, making smart decisions, and bringing relentless energy on both ends. The idea of sliding into a starting role alongside two future Hall of Famers was clearly tempting.
Brown said he was ready to commit. He even called his financial advisor to start looking for housing in Los Angeles - no small task given the real estate market there. But just as quickly as the Lakers’ offer came in, another call changed everything.
That call came from his agent, who had just heard from the Indiana Pacers. And the number on the table?
Two years, $40 million. Brown’s reaction was immediate.
“I’m like, ‘What the f***? What do you mean, two years, $40 million?
Where do we sign?’” he recalled.
The Pacers weren’t just offering money. They were offering urgency, belief, and a clear role.
Tyrese Haliburton even personally reached out to let Brown know how excited he was to team up. Eventually, the Pacers upped the deal to two years, $45 million - a shorter commitment than the Lakers’ offer but with a stronger financial punch up front.
Brown took it.
"I was going to the Lakers. ... It was 3-year, $50 million."
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) December 18, 2025
Bruce Brown says he almost left the Nuggets to play with LeBron James and Anthony Davis after winning the championship in 2023 😲
(via @DNVR_Nuggets)pic.twitter.com/tlPFQ0mKzU
But the story didn’t end there. After a brief stint in Indiana, the Pacers traded him to the Raptors during the 2023-24 season.
Then came another move - this time to the Pelicans. All that movement, all that uncertainty, led Brown to reflect on the decision that set it all in motion.
“Media day they asked me, ‘When did you start thinking about getting back to Denver?’” Brown said.
“And I said, when I got to Toronto. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go to Toronto - I liked it there.
But I picked Indy, and three months in, they trade me. I’m like, ‘Where the f*** did I go?
I could have stayed in Denver.’”
It’s a rare bit of honesty in a league where most players keep their cards close. Brown’s regret wasn’t about money or minutes - it was about fit, stability, and the feeling of being part of something bigger.
He had that in Denver. He left to chase another opportunity, and while he doesn’t blame anyone, the revolving door of trades made it clear: the grass isn’t always greener.
Now, Brown is back in a Nuggets jersey after signing a one-year deal this past summer. It’s a reunion that feels right - for both sides.
Denver gets back a versatile, playoff-tested guard who knows the system and brings energy every night. Brown gets a second chance with the team where everything clicked.
Looking back, he doesn’t hide his feelings.
“I could have stayed in Denver and been happy,” he said.
Sometimes, the best move is the one you don’t make. For Bruce Brown, the journey came full circle. And now that he’s back in the Mile High City, he’s got the chance to write a new chapter - one that might just feel a little more like home.