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Denver Nuggets celebrity Nikola Jokic has agreed to the biggest contract in NBA historical past — a five-year, $270 million supermax extension, his brokers Jeff Schwartz and Mike Lindeman of Excel Sports activities informed ESPN on Thursday night time.
Jokic, the two-time reigning Maximum Precious Participant, is now secured to the Nuggets for a complete of six seasons for $303 million. The deal features a participant possibility and a industry kicker.
A second-round draft pick out, Jokic has developed into one of the most incredible forces within the historical past of the sport, a transformative offensive skill who’s secured back-to-back league MVP awards.
Jokic, 27, averaged 27.1 issues, 13.8 rebounds and seven.9 assists in 74 video games for the Nuggets closing season, as he edged out Philadelphia 76ers heart Joel Embiid to win the league’s most sensible particular person honor for a moment directly season, changing into the fifteenth participant to win no less than two MVP awards of their profession and the tenth to win them in back-to-back seasons.
He turned into eligible for the supermax when he received his first MVP award following the 2021 season, surroundings him as much as lengthen thru the rest of his high in Denver. Avid gamers qualify for the supermax by way of being named to an All-NBA group or successful Defensive Participant of the 12 months, in both the latest season or the 2 prior seasons, or by way of successful the league’s MVP award in any of the closing 3 seasons.
Now a four-time All-Big name and three-time All-NBA variety, Jokic has grow to be arguably the best passing large guy within the historical past of the game, necessarily running as some extent guard for Denver in a 6-foot-11 frame.
Jokic, who was once born in Sombor, Serbia, was once the No. 41 total pick out within the 2014 NBA draft. He got here to the league a 12 months later and temporarily made himself an very important a part of Denver’s plans prior to blossoming into an All-Big name for the primary time within the 2018-19 season.
Jokic’s ascension to All-Big name standing the previous 4 seasons has coincided with Denver rocketing up the Western Convention standings and making the postseason 4 occasions in a row — together with a travel to the Western Convention finals throughout the NBA’s bubble on the Walt Disney Global Lodges in Orlando, Fla.
Now, Jokic and Denver will head into subsequent season hoping to make it to the NBA finals for the primary time in franchise historical past, probably with Jamal Murray, who overlooked closing season with a torn ACL he suffered within the spring of 2021, and Michael Porter Jr., who overlooked the majority of closing season after present process again surgical operation, each again at the courtroom along him once more.
With Murray lacking every of the closing two playoffs, Denver misplaced in the second one around to the Phoenix Suns in 2021, and within the first to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors this previous season.
Denver started reshaping its roster forward of subsequent season by way of buying and selling guards Monte Morris and Will Barton to the Washington Wizards previous this week in alternate for guards Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith, with Caldwell-Pope more likely to slot into Denver’s beginning lineup as a 3-and-D wing subsequent to Murray within the backcourt.
ESPN NBA reporter Tim Bontemps contributed to this document.