Following two straight second round exits, Nuggets are busy making significant roster upgrades, hoping to return to title contention. As expected, all of their plans revolve around their franchise star Nikola Jokic. Without him, the supporting cast might not be of much use. So naturally, one of their topmost priorities this summer was to solidify Jokic’s stay in Denver by offering him a multi-year extension. But looks like The Joker is not ready for a long-term commitment just yet!
Per ESPN’s report, the Serbian star plans to delay extension talks until next summer and will not seek a new deal this year. As of now, he is eligible to ink a three-year $200 million extension until October 20. That would replace his $62.8 million player option for the 2027-28 season. But since Jokic has three years remaining on his current deal, he can afford to wait another year to sign a more lucrative contract next summer.
By waiting another year, the three-time MVP will be eligible to add a fourth year to his extension at $77 million. Obviously, Nuggets front office would be more than willing to offer their greatest franchise player the best deal. Even this year, Josh Kroenke clearly intended to extend Jokic’s stay, as he publicly stated, “We’re definitely going to offer it.”
Nikola Jokic will wait until next summer on a possible extension https://t.co/yH2MAc4BNQ
— Ohm Youngmisuk (@NotoriousOHM) July 9, 2025
However, the owner was aware of the possibility of Jokic delaying the talks for a better deal next summer, “I’m not sure if he’s going to accept it or not, because we’re also going to explain every financial parameter around him signing now versus signing later. To be completely transparent, that’s the way we always are. And then he makes the best decision for himself and his family, and we’ll support him in it.” So, Jokic’s reported decision does not come as a surprise to the Nuggets front office. But what did shock everyone was Kroenke hinting at a potential Jokic trade.
Josh Kroenke brings up ‘nightmare scenario’ for Nuggets amid Nikola Jokic extension talks
While Jokic will reportedly not sign an extension this summer, it’s safe to say that he does not intend to leave Denver. After all, he has spent his entire career playing for the same franchise and elevating them to unimaginable heights. But Kroenke recently made a shocking statement, hinting at the possibility of trading their superstar big man.
“I think that for us as an organization, going into that second apron is not necessarily something that we’re scared of. I think that there are rules around it that we needed to be very careful of with our injury history. The wrong person gets injured and very quickly you’re in a scenario where that I never wanna have to contemplate and that’s trading number 15.” Kroenke remarked.
Of course, number 15 was a reference to Jokic’s jersey. Although Josh was just addressing the worst-case scenario, Nuggets fans do not even want to consider this possibility. Fortunately, Kroenke does not plan on parting ways with Jokic anytime soon, as evident from his moves this summer. They have already added several key players, including Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Bruce Brown. While the Valanciunas dilemma is yet to be resolved, the vision remains to win another championship with Joker as the centerpiece. Nuggets fans have nothing to worry about. Do you agree?
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