The Nuggets haven't extended Nikola Jokic and the rest of the league is well aware.
The Denver Nuggets are in a difficult position when it comes to the status of their biggest star and the rest of the league is starting to notice.
For the last two offseasons, Nikola Jokic has been eligible to sign a contract extension with Denver and for the last two offseasons, Jokic has stated that he wants to push off any extension talk until the next offseason.
When it happened last summer, it was easy to write it off as Jokic wanting to wait and see how the season went and burn one more year of his contract so the extension locked him down later in his career, but now that he's moved to push it off again, it becomes a concerning question of where the Nuggets are at as a franchise.
Portland Trail Blazers center Donovan Clingan (23) and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) fight for position during the second half at Ball Arena. Ron Chenoy-Imagn ImagesThe Nuggets had a fairly successful season and finished as the third-seed in the tough Western Conference, but they were instantly upset by the sixth-seed Minnesota Timberwolves and sent packing in the first round.
Unsteady Ground in Denver
Now, after an offseason where the Nuggets have mostly stood still yet are still in the second apron for next season, the Nuggets don't look to be in a very encouraging position to be able to further build around Jokic and the perceived instability is something that the rest of the league has taken notice of, per a report from Marc Stein on the DNVR Nuggets podcast.
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic(15) and guard Jamal Murray (27) react before the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Ball Arena. Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images"There are a lot of eyeballs on the Denver Nuggets right now league-wide," Stein said (via HoopsHype). "There is a lot of curiosity about where this team is going and, let's face it, [Nikola] Jokic could have signed an extension for the second straight summer and did not."
Stein went on to discuss that even if the Nuggets' financial situation is the main factor behind the delay of an extension, the rest of the league is still going to be aware of that and close watch on the Nuggets moving forward.
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) is fouled by Toronto Raptors center Jakob Poeltl (19) as forward Aaron Gordon (32) defends in the fourth quarter at Ball Arena. Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn ImagesTime Is Running Out
Jokic is heading into the final guaranteed year of his current contract, with a player option available to him after that, so the Nuggets simply do not have any more time to wait on Jokic without the assurance of an extension.
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) shoots for three as Memphis Grizzlies forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (18) defends during the fourth quarter at FedExForum. Petre Thomas-Imagn ImagesDenver is in a difficult spot both financially and when it comes to the product on the floor and while the finances aren't something that can be resolved immediately, the actual performance on the court is going to be crucial for the Nuggets to actually prove that they can still be a contending team in the latter half of Jokic's career.
Jokic is still a top-three player in the league and that may not change anytime soon and with the possibility of him being on the market not yet out of the question, there's no doubt that the rest of the league will be keeping their eyes and ears open for the chance to steal the three-time MVP away from the team that drafted and developed him.
