Nikola Jokic has never been one to speak up and meddle in team affairs, but it might be time for him to change course and apply some pressure. Nuggets ownership has indicated that they’d like to avoid the luxury tax, and as they’re currently sitting $402K over the tax line, they may be inclined to make a cost-cutting move to shed salary ahead of the trade deadline.
But that’s not going to cut it for a Denver team that has a title window of the next few years, and is going to need all the help it can get to topple the Thunder and the rest of the contenders, especially in the West.
The Nuggets should be buying, not selling, as this roster is good, but it could be better. The team has its flaws, and they’d do well to address them ahead of the deadline by adding another player or two. But if the team is more committed to saving money than improving the roster, that’s obviously not going to happen.
Time for Jokic to apply pressure to ownership
That’s where Jokic comes in. With his next contract still unsigned, he’s due for a massive supermax extension this offseason, but until the ink is dry, he still holds all the leverage. He has shown no indication that he would ever leave Denver, but at the same time, he can’t spend the last few years of his prime playing for a team that won’t prioritize winning.
It’s not the Jokic way, but if there was ever a time for him to ratchet things up a little bit and make ownership uncomfortable, it’s now. He needs to make it clear that the Nuggets still need to convince him to stay in Denver for the rest of his career, and making moves to save money in the middle of a title-or-bust season would not be helping their cause.
Ownership made their position clear, but ultimately, Jokic holds the cards. If he lets them know that ducking the tax this season is unacceptable, that could quickly change the entire narrative. It’s one thing to talk about being frugal and keeping flexibility for the future when you’ve got the best player in the world trotting out every night.
But if Jokic’s future comes into doubt, that changes everything. The Nuggets will go back to courting the Joker and proving their commitment to him by spending. It could make things uncomfortable, but that may be what’s needed. If Jokic were to put his thumb on the scale for the good of the franchise, I can’t imagine any fan would hold it against him.