There was definitely some question as to Jonas Valanciunas’ level of buy-in with the Nuggets after attempting to retire from the NBA and sign with a EuroLeague team, but once it was clear that Denver wanted him to honor his contract, he said all the right things. JV released a statement saying he would play for the Nuggets and give it his all to win a championship.
It was nice to hear, but Jonas had 10.4 million reasons to come play for the Nuggets, so it wasn’t exactly a shocking decision. The bigger issue was just how invested he was going to be in this season. He’s just 33 years old, but if he has one foot out the door and plans to coast to retirement and a trip to Europe next summer, he may not be the player the Nuggets thought they were getting.
While it’s just one preseason game, the early returns were very promising for Big Val, who looked locked in and ready to go. He was borderline dominant on a few plays and looked like a beast with plenty left in the tank.
Valanciunas flirted with retiring to Europe
He definitely didn’t look like a player who wasn’t excited to play for the Nuggets; if anything, the veteran big man brought as much energy as just about anyone on the team. This is the version of JV that the Nuggets traded for, and this is the version they need at backup center to win a title.
He played just 13 minutes in Saturday night’s preseason opening loss to the Timberwolves, but was very involved, scoring 6 points on 3-5 shooting, adding a rebound and two assists as well. He operated with the ball a lot and capably led the offense at times.
He was also aggressive on defense, and though it could have yielded better results, he held his ground and got his money's worth, committing 5 quick fouls. The Nuggets don’t need JV to be a star or to play heavy minutes, but they absolutely need him to bring it every night and give them strong bursts off the bench.
He has said that’s what he plans to do, and that’s what he did on Saturday night. On a tough night for the team overall, Valanciunas was one of the bright spots. Hopefully, he can continue to shine in the preseason as he acclimates to his new squad, and he’ll be ready to hit the ground running once the regular season begins later this month.