The Denver Nuggets are staring at a brutal money problem, and Zeke Nnaji has become the clearest name to circle if they want to fix it.
Right now, Denver is projected by CapSheets to owe more than $65 million in luxury tax this coming season with its current roster under contract. The team is also already more than $2 million above the second apron line.
And that number doesn’t even include restricted free agent Peyton Watson. If he signs, especially for the kind of deal he’s rumored to be seeking, the Nuggets could be headed for a luxury tax bill the franchise has never paid before.
That leaves Denver with a simple reality: it has to find a way to shed money, and it probably has to do it soon.
Among the contracts on the books, Nnaji’s stands out as one of the toughest to justify. He’s due nearly $15 million over the next two seasons, assuming he picks up his $7.4 million player option next summer.
On the Nuggets’ books, that already puts him sixth in total salary value for next season. By next summer, with Cameron Johnson set to be a free agent, it would jump into the top five.
That’s a lot of money for a player who may be buried as a third-string center. Nnaji is set to take up nearly 5% of Denver’s salary cap, and there’s no guarantee he’s even in the nightly rotation.
His production last season didn’t move the needle much. Nnaji appeared in 52 games and averaged 3.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, and shot 47.0% from the field in 12 minutes per night. It was the first time since 2023 that he averaged more than 3.5 points per game in a season.
The bigger issue is the track record. Nnaji has never averaged more than 7.0 points per game, and he has never played more than 60 games in a season. That makes the deal look even rougher, especially when he’s making more than players like Spencer Jones and Julian Strawther.
Yes, Denver has expensive contracts elsewhere. Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, and Aaron Gordon are all at the top of the payroll, and Christian Braun’s $25 million AAV now enters the picture as his five-year extension begins this season. But those are the kinds of contracts teams tolerate because those players carry major minutes and major responsibility.
Nnaji doesn’t appear to be in that category. He’s being paid like a high-end rotation piece, but he might not even be one of the Nuggets’ top 11 players.
That’s why moving him should be the first real move if Denver wants to get its books in shape and create room for a Watson deal. If the Nuggets have to attach future draft assets to make it happen, so be it. After their recent draft-day trade down with the San Antonio Spurs, they now have three second-round picks through 2033.
One second-rounder, or maybe more, could be enough to get a rebuilding team to take Nnaji’s contract off Denver’s hands. If that happens, the Nuggets would clear real money and erase one of their worst deals for the next two seasons.
In Other News...
Nuggets Fans Have Every Reason To Worry About Denvers Cap Crunch
Denvers roster math is getting harder to ignore, and Peyton Watsons departure only sharpens the concern. The Nuggets were already navigating a tight salary picture, with contract commitments piling up around a core that still has to be built out if the team wants to stay competitive in the West. Losing a young piece like Watson leaves another empty spot to fill, and it comes at a time when every move seems tied to the same financial squeeze.
Christian Brauns long-term extension has only added to the pressure on Denvers front office, especially as questions linger about whether the price tag will match the production going forward. For a team trying to balance present expectations with future flexibility, that kind of commitment matters. The Nuggets now have less room to maneuver, and the next roster decision could say a lot about how much risk they are willing to take to keep this group intact. [Read more 🡒]
Cavaliers Just Got Pulled Into A Move With Bigger NBA Stakes
Peyton Watson is on the move, and the ripple effects of the five-team trade that sent him from Denver to Cleveland could reach well beyond the original deal. The Nuggets were part of a sprawling transaction involving multiple draft picks and player movement, a reminder that summer roster work can still reshape both present depth and future flexibility in one sweep.
Now the bigger question around Denver is what comes next, especially with DeMar DeRozan suddenly on the free-agent market after being waived by Sacramento. The six-time All-Star would give Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray another polished scorer to lean on, and for a Nuggets team still searching for the right balance around its stars, the timing makes the possibility more than just a footnote. [Read more 🡒]
David Adelmans Bench Decisions Could Make Or Break Denvers Depth
With the Nuggets roster turning over around him, David Adelman is being asked to solve one of the trickiest parts of coaching in the NBA: keeping the floor steady when the starters sit. Denver lost key rotation pieces and now has to fold in younger, less experienced options, including rookie Alpha Diallo and second-round pick Trevon Brazile, while Tyus Jones is penciled in as the backup point guard. For a team that expects to play deep into the spring, those non-star minutes can matter as much as any late-game possession.
Adelmans task is less about simply finding bodies and more about finding the right pairings, especially on a bench that has to hold up defensively without giving away too much offense. The Nuggets will also lean on assistant coach Dave Joerger to help build out the second unit, giving Denver a little more structure as the rotation takes shape. The early read on how those combinations work could go a long way toward determining whether the Nuggets depth becomes a strength or a concern. [Read more 🡒]