According to Bennett Durando of the Denver Post, Nikola Jokic informed the Denver Nuggets that he will not sign a contract extension. At least not this offseason.
Yes, Jokic will still play on a massive five-year, $276 million supermax contract, with two years remaining and a player option for a third. But he reportedly could've added up to three years and $212 million to that deal today.
He did not.
Even though it's financially smart on the three-time MVP's part, considering he can make $80 million more by extending in summer 2026, the decision to delay extension talks for a year cranks up the pressure on next season's Nuggets exponentially. But I think that's a good thing.
To this point in the Serbian center's career, he's stood out as the ideal superstar: an outstanding team player who's never in the spotlight for the wrong reason and willing to sacrifice personally for the team's greater good. Remember Jokic coming to Malone in November 2016, asking to come off the bench so that Jusuf Nurkic could start? He's always been a "good soldier."
However, in conjunction with telling reporters following the Oklahoma City series loss that the Nuggets were clearly not "good enough" to win a championship, not extending his contract at this first opportunity might signal to the franchise that the time to go for it around him is now.
Jokic, already one of the best players of all time, is in his prime. His longtime running mate, Jamal Murray, is in his prime. Aaron Gordon, an ideal puzzle piece between Jokic and Murray, is in his prime. Christian Braun's clearly ascending. And that's just the new core four.
The new front office finally made some offseason noise, trading Michael Porter Jr. and a future first for Cam Johnson, signing Bruce Brown and Tim Hardaway Jr. to minimum contracts, and flipping Dario Saric for (hopefully) Jonas Valanciunas (assuming the allure of Europe doesn't win out for the Lithuanian big man). If that doesn't scream bolstered bench depth, I don't know what does.
I think everyone around the organization understands the urgency of maximizing the rest of the Joker's prime. A generational talent like him cannot finish with just one championship ring, playing his entire career alongside a cast that does not include any All-NBA, All-Star, All-Defensive Team, or Rookie of the Year teammates.
The big fella just threw down a mind-boggling offensive season, registering a season-long triple-double average: 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game. Preposterous numbers from the 30-year-old. Despite the offensive brilliance, Big Honey finished second in MVP voting to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. But in doing so, he became the first player since Larry Bird to finish either first or second in MVP voting for five consecutive seasons.
While it feels like he's always getting better and reaching loftier heights than even the most delusional Nuggets fan ever anticipated, we can't expect him to always improve. And in defiance of Jokic's seemingly constant upward trend, the Nuggets have plateaued at Game 7 losses in the second round since reaching the NBA's mountaintop in 2023.
Betting against the Nuggets has always been easy to do, but I'm not about to "bet against the fat boy." And right now is the time to meaningfully build around Jokic. So that he does sign that contract extension next summer. So that the Nuggets do win another NBA title. And so that the greatest player in the franchise's history ultimately does stay in the Mile High City for the rest of his illustrious career.
Pressure's on.