Grading the Dario Saric signing for the Denver Nuggets

Ladies and gentlemen, the Nuggets have finally signed a free agent. The team came to terms with one of their top targets, versatile big man Dario Saric. Saric is playing currently for Team Croatia, trying to qualify for the Olympics and he played last season in the NBA for the Golden State Warriors.

The Dario Saric contract

The Nuggets signed Saric to a two-year, $10.6 million contract using the taxpayer midlevel exception with the second year being a player option for Dario. This was the only means Denver had to sign a player to more than a minimum contract. The signing pushes the Nuggets over the first apron and they’ll now be restricted to adding players for minimum deals only.

How does Dario Saric fit on the Nuggets?

In Saric, the Nuggets are getting a very skilled big man with inside and outside skills. Saric can shoot the ball and stretch the floor, he can run some pick and roll, pick and pop, and dribble hand-off actions, and he is a very solid passer and connector. He’s also a savvy and cerebral player and his game should fit very smoothly in Denver.

Saric’s versatility should allow him to play the 4 or the 5 and he can theoretically play in the frontcourt alongside Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon, DaRon Holmes II, or even Zeke Nnaji. This move should provide some much-needed lineup flexibility for coach Michael Malone - something he hasn’t had in years.

With Saric (and Holmes), on paper, the Nuggets have their deepest frontcourt in years and should actually be able to give Jokic some much-needed rest without hemorrhaging points immediately. Backup big man has been an issue for many years and it’s great to see the front office attacking that issue aggressively and really investing in a deep big-man rotation.

The Nuggets' rotation is slowly coming together

The Nuggets still have some holes on the roster and they’ve done very little to fill the void left by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, but they have clearly gotten better in the frontcourt. Saric helps address that need and also helps to address the lack of shooting. The team still needs another move or two, but this is a strong start. Now with Dario in the fold, the roster and rotation are starting to come together. 

The sky isn’t falling, Nuggets fans. The team will look different next season, but this is a rock-solid move to fortify the bench and solve some problems. Given what the team had to work with and what was available, this is a very strong signing for the Nuggets.