The Denver Nuggets may have a clean opening to take a swing on a former lottery pick, and Devin Carter is suddenly sitting right in the middle of it.
Carter is being waived by the Atlanta Hawks, according to league sources, after the team’s roster crunch left him as the odd man out. That gives Denver a chance to jump in if it wants to use its final 15-man roster spot or one of its two-way openings on the 24-year-old guard.
Carter entered the league as the No. 13 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, selected by the Sacramento Kings out of Providence. Sacramento moved on quickly and sent him to Atlanta this offseason for a 2033 second-round pick, a deal made to clear its own salary situation and stay out of the luxury tax. Atlanta, meanwhile, appears willing to absorb Carter’s $5.1 million salary for 2026-27 if he clears waivers, while still remaining under the tax line.
For Denver, the appeal is obvious: defense.
At Providence, the 6-foot-2, 195-pound guard was known as a fast, disruptive defender with strong point-of-attack skills, a high motor and plenty of edge. He averaged 1.8 steals in both his sophomore and junior seasons, along with 1.1 and 1.0 blocks. Even in limited run with the Kings, his per-36-minute numbers showed 1.9 and 1.7 steals, which only reinforced that part of his game.
The problem is the other end. Carter is described as a poor shooter and not really a floor general, which matters for a Nuggets team that already has Tyus Jones in the backup point guard role.
That’s why the cleanest path would be a two-way deal. Denver still has a two-way spot open, and landing Carter that way would give the team a chance to take advantage of his former lottery-pick upside without tying itself to a minimum contract. A standard deal could complicate the Nuggets’ efforts to trim salary and stay clear of the NBA’s second apron penalty threshold, while also risking a bigger tax bill on a player who remains an unproven project.
On a two-way contract, though, the fit is straightforward.
In Other News...
Nuggets Wing Addition Just Put Real Pressure On Denvers Rotation
The Nuggets have kept working the edges of their roster, adding DeMar DeRozan on a one-year veterans minimum deal to help stabilize a wing rotation that needed more bodies and more proven scoring. Alongside that move, Denver also officially brought in Lonnie Walker IV after he exited his contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv, giving the team another look at a player with NBA experience who can compete for a spot in camp.
Walkers path into the roster picture is a lot less certain than DeRozans. His deal is a training camp invite with no guaranteed money, which means he has to earn everything once camp opens and the numbers start getting tight, and that kind of uncertainty only adds pressure to a Denver rotation that is already being sorted out. [Read more 🡒]
Nikola Jokic Sounds Fed Up As Nuggets Face A Delicate Spotlight Issue
The Nuggets spent the offseason navigating tight financial restrictions, a reality that shaped the way they could build out the roster around Nikola Jokic. Even with the organizational squeeze, the bigger long-term question continues to hang over Denver because Jokic is in a contract year, and the three-time MVP remains the kind of star every front office watches closely when his future gets even a little uncertain.
Jokic, though, has made it clear he wants to stay in Denver, which is the part the Nuggets can feel good about. The delicate spotlight issue is the other side of it. He has been open about wanting more privacy in his personal time, and with rival teams monitoring the contract situation, the conversation around him is never just about basketball for very long. [Read more 🡒]
Nikola Jokic Just Gave Nuggets Fans A Rarely Seen Frustration
Nikola Jokic is used to being at the center of everything for the Nuggets, but his latest comments were about the part of fame he clearly likes least. In an interview, the two-time MVP said the attention and popularity that come with his profile have become harder to manage, and he spoke candidly about how often people approach him away from the court. He also shifted to basketball, discussing the kinds of defenders who make life difficult for him and noting just how much talent exists across the league.
For Nuggets fans, it was a rare glimpse of Jokic sounding less amused and more guarded than usual. He acknowledged that he is becoming less accommodating in those moments off the floor, preferring to protect his own time rather than spend it on pictures and small talk, even as he remains one of the leagues most approachable stars. On the court, the challenge is easier to understand, since he rattled off several bigs who give him real problems and underscored that no matchup ever comes easy in a league full of capable bodies. [Read more 🡒]