Nuggets’ Paul Millsap: ‘It was pretty simple, Denver was the team’

The Denver Nuggets made a serious splash in NBA free agency by agreeing to a three-year, $90 million deal with All-Star Paul Millsap, who said it was an easy decision to join Denver.

The Denver Nuggets have been after All-Star power forward Paul Millsap for a while. They came close to trading for him last summer and pursued him once again this February at the trade deadline, but finally landed him in NBA free agency on Sunday as Millsap agreed to a three-year, $90 million deal.

Millsap gets his money on a team that’s on the rise with the masterful passing sensation that is Nikola Jokic, while the Nuggets get a clear talent upgrade at power forward, seriously bolster their defense (man, did they need it), and keep their salary cap flexibility going forward due to a team option on the third year of the deal.

Courtesy of Chris Vivlamore of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Millsap has provided a comment on his free agency decision. After explaining that the Atlanta Hawks never offered a contract to keep him, he laid out why it was an easy decision for him to join the Nuggets:

"“It was pretty simple,” Millsap told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Monday. “Denver, they came and they’ve been wanting me for years. They made that known. The presentation that they gave me, it felt comfortable, it felt real. At the end of the day it was going to be the team that I felt most comfortable with and Atlanta. Atlanta decided to go another direction. They didn’t want to make an offer. So it was pretty simple. Denver was the team.”"

The Phoenix Suns and Minnesota Timberwolves were both interested in Millsap, but dropped out before the Nuggets emerged as front runners. And if the words of the player himself are anything to go by, it’s clear how at ease he felt making a decision to join the Nuggets, a team that he didn’t need to say made him feel so comfortable.

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“Definitely disappointing,” Millsap said to Vivlamore, when discussing what it was like to not experience any effort from the Hawks to keep him. “I thought I meant a bit more than that to them. But it is what it is. I’m happy with the decision I’ve made. I’m happy with the team I’m with. I’m ready to get it going with them.”

Last season, Millsap averaged career-highs in points (18.1) and assists (3.7) to go along with 7.7 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game. Without Dwight Howard clogging the paint next to him, Millsap’s rebounding numbers will likely increase next season to help with the stellar defensive versatility he’ll bring around the floor. Among power forwards last season, Millsap ranked sixth in Defensive Real Plus/Minus and third in overall Real Plus/Minus. He’s highly impactful in so many areas of the game, to say the least, which makes his value so high as he’s the ideal definition of a player that doesn’t need to be hitting shots to make an impact.

“Defensively, I know I can help in that area,” Millsap added. “Add that with the (team) scoring capability, you have something really special.”

Next: Nuggets aiming to clear cap space to sign George Hill

This is a fantastic partnership for both Millsap and Denver, one that greatly helps the teams chances of making it back into the playoff picture.