Jokic offers another maximum salary? His average 4 points per game soared to 15+5, and the Nuggets will be forced to dismantle the team again

On October 11, according to US media reports today, the Kings and Westbrook have a strong willingness to cooperate, and the possibility of the two parties reaching a contract is as high as 70%. I guess many fans still don't understand why Westbrook didn't stay with the Nuggets when he still had one year of contract, but chose to jump out of the contract and leave the team? I think the main reason here is that the Nuggets may have told Westbrook that we will not reuse you next season. If you stay, we will let you sit on the bench. If Westbrook wants to face this person and does not respect him, he will definitely choose to leave the team.

After Westbrook left the team, the Nuggets acquired Bruce Brown, Hardaway and Varan to fill the team's bench. Except for Varan, the other two may not improve the team as much as Westbrook, but their functions are different.

Although Jokic and Westbrook worked well together last season and had a good chemical reaction, they were only in the regular season. Westbrook was still not good in the playoffs. If they want to win the championship, they cannot use Westbrook. After a series of operations in the offseason, the Nuggets now do have the strength to win the championship. Just like Jokic said: I hope we will become a dark horse. They were the team that put the most pressure on the Thunder last season, and now the team's biggest shortcoming, the bench, has been strengthened.

Let's take a look at their lineup for next season. The starters are: Murray, Braun, Cameron Johnson, Gordon and Jokic. The main rotation of the substitutes is: Watson, Hardaway, Strawther, Bruce Brown and Varan. Although the bench seems to be lagging behind the strength of the league's top bench, having Jokic on the bench gives them the ability to challenge the top players. Last season, the bench was much worse than this. As a result, Jokic led the team and forced the championship Thunder into a tiebreaker.

Judging from the start of the preseason so far, the new players Bruce Brown and Varan have given the team a lot of help. Their playing styles are adapted to the Nuggets. After Jokic comes off the court, Varan can get absolute ball rights to kill. Although Cameron Johnson does not have Michael Porter's strong shooting ability, his defense is better, and the Nuggets do not have much demand for Kayo on the offensive end. They already have a good Porter replacement.

He is Braun. He was promoted to the team's starter last season. As a result, this young man has improved every year. In his rookie season, Braun averaged 15 minutes per game, but with 4.7 points and 2.4 rebounds, he was still a marginal rotation of the team at that time. In the second year of his career, he relied on his good off-ball ability to get more playing time, averaging 7.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Based on his performance at the time, Braun was not worthy of being included in the starting lineup.

But after Pope left the team, the team was in urgent need of an excellent defender and off-ball player on the wing, so Braun became the starting player. Unexpectedly, he performed very well next to Jokic, averaging 15.0 points per game last season. With data of 4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.1 steals, he is good at cutting and counterattacking without the ball, and can also open up space. He may not be able to display such power next to other stars, but next to Jokic, he can display his value.

Jokic is, after all, the number one player in the world. He possesses top-level destructive defensive abilities and good organizational skills. Many players have received big contracts because of his significant improvement in statistics. For example, Michael Porter received a 5-year 180 million contract, Jamal Murray received a 200 million contract, and Gordon received a 3-year 100 million contract. It can be said that except for Gordon, the other two will have premium contracts if they leave Jokic.

Now Braun is expected to give the Nuggets a headache. According to the famous reporter Jack Fisher, discussions about rookie contract renewal in the league are still continuing. Many players are striving to reach a contract with an average annual salary of 30 million and complete the renewal before October 20. This includes Braun. According to league sources, Braun's starting salary is expected to be around 25-30 million. Is the asking price too high?

A third-year player has very good off-the-ball and defensive abilities, has top-level 3D potential, and has a very high golf IQ. Such young potential is worthy of a big contract from the team. If the Nuggets don't give it, they probably won't be able to keep it, but if they do, they will regret it. After all, he relies on Jokic's data, just like JR and the Eight Wise Kings around James back then. Judging from the current situation, I think the Nuggets may have to dismantle the team again in the future. The team already has three maximum salaries. If Murray is given another maximum salary, they will definitely not be able to sustain it.

The one who is most likely to leave is Murray. After all, the other three are the core of the team. Speaking of which, what do you want to say about the current Nuggets? Welcome to leave a message for discussion.