5 reasons why the Denver Nuggets re-signing Aaron Gordon long-term was a no-brainer
By Tyler Key
The vibes have been relatively low for the Denver Nuggets organization and fan base since their game-7 collapse against the Timberwolves last season. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope left for Orlando, Jamal Murray struggled in the Olympics, First-rounder DaRon Holmes II tore his ACL, and the Nuggets went 1-4 in preseason… The vibes are now fixed thanks to Aaron Gordon.
Murray inked his new long-term deal with the Nuggets in September, which was always expected, but now Gordon has also signed an extension with the team as well! After Denver’s front office opted to let KCP walk this offseason, there was much debate about what would happen with Gordon moving forward.
There were rumblings at Nuggets media day about Gordon being excited about the idea of sticking around with Denver for the extended future. Now that Gordon's deal is finalized, the 2023 NBA Championship Core 4 of Jokic, Murray, Porter Jr., and Gordon will stay intact for at least another 3 years.
What are the details of the contract for Aaron Gordon?
Gordon agreed to opt into his $23 million contract for 2025-2026 and has signed on for 3 additional years at the maximum salary he could be offered by Denver, for $133 million total over the next 4 years.
Shams Sharania also noted that there will be bonuses built into the contract and that Gordon’s contract will have a trade kicker and a player option for 2028-2029. Looking forward at the Nuggets’ team salary situation is a bit daunting now, as the Nuggets Core 4 will earn a combined $181.9 million in 2026-2027 (107% of the projected salary cap).
With that being said, there are too many reasons to be wildly excited about this move for Denver and Gordon alike. Most notably, there are 5 reasons why the Nuggets solidifying this asset was an absolute no-brainer for the organization.
