The Nuggets are running back the clock and hoping to recapture some championship magic with their first free agent acquisition of the summer.
Bruce Brown has agreed to a one-year veteran minimum contract with Denver, a league source told The Denver Post, marking a symbiotic reunion two offseasons after the Nuggets lost their beloved sixth man in free agency.
Brown, who turns 29 in August, scored the go-ahead bucket late in Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals, pushing the Nuggets to their first championship in franchise history. He was rewarded the ensuing offseason with a two-year, $45 million deal in Indiana. Since then, he has been traded twice, first to Toronto in 2024 then to New Orleans this year. The contract expires this week, as a new league calendar begins.
Brown maintained a fondness for the city of Denver and his Nuggets teammates while he was away. He remained active in a group chat with other 2023 players, and he kept a two-hour video on his phone of every basket he made during his lone season in Denver. It was a career year — he averaged 11.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, shooting 48.3% from the field and 35.8% from 3-point range.
Brown even attended a playoff game at Ball Arena this season and visited with Nuggets players and coaches after the game, a win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
The reunion accompanies a shocking trade of Michael Porter Jr., another key player from the 2023 championship team. The Nuggets were able to shed significant salary in that deal, giving themselves more space under the first tax apron to make another free agency acquisition after Brown.
He’s coming off an injury-hampered season, but the Nuggets hope he can provide positional versatility, defensive length and secondary play-making off the bench in a role that’s likely to resemble his old one.
Notes: Summer League roster, coaching interview
While free agency has taken centerstage, the Nuggets are still attending to other orders of business, too. Mavericks assistant coach Jared Dudley is meeting with them in Denver this week, league sources told The Denver Post, after the Nuggets received permission from Dallas to interview him for a potential spot on David Adelman’s staff. Dudley has been on Jason Kidd’s staff since 2021.
Denver also remains in the process of filling its three two-way roster spots. Tamar Bates, a lefty guard out of Missouri, has already agreed to a contract. The other two spots will likely be divided between one returner and one newcomer. The Nuggets extended a two-way qualifying offer to Spencer Jones, one league source confirmed, meaning they plan to re-sign the Stanford alum as a restricted free agent.
Trey Alexander and PJ Hall will not be retained from last season, however. Alexander was named G League Rookie of the Year after the former Creighton star averaged 25.8 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists for the Grand Rapids Gold on a two-way contract. He appeared in 24 games with the NBA squad. Hall appeared in 19 during his rookie year out of Clemson.
The Nuggets are also signing Iowa State guard Curtis Jones to an Exhibit 10 contract, sources told The Post. They’re bringing in former Nets guard Reece Beekman and Saint Louis University wing Terrence Hargrove Jr. on Summer League deals. Their first game in Las Vegas tips off at 7:30 p.m. MT on July 10 against Milwaukee.
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Originally Published: June 30, 2025 at 5:29 PM MDT