Understanding Nuggets Sign Six-Time All-Star DeRozan

DeMar DeRozan in a Nuggets jersey still looks wrong in my head. Six-time All-Star. Career 21-point scorer. Mid-range assassin in a league that forgot the mid-range exists.

And now he's Denver's problem — or their solution, depending on how you squint at the roster sheet. The deal dropped last week. Two years, $38 million guaranteed. Team option on the second. The details matter here.

Calvin Booth didn't leak it, didn't tease it, just announced it at 11:47 PM on a Tuesday like it was a routine waiver claim. Classic Nuggets. What This Signing Actually Means DeRozan isn't a star anymore. He's not the guy who carried Toronto to 59 wins or dragged Chicago to the play-in tournament.

He's 36 in August. His legs don't explode the way they did in 2018. But he's also not washed — not even close. Last season in Sacramento he averaged 22.1 points on 48/33/85 splits, played 76 games, and ran more pick-and-roll possessions per 36 minutes than anyone not named Jokic or Luka.

The Nuggets didn't sign a savior. They signed a stabilizer. The roster context nobody's talking about Denver lost Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to Orlando. Lost Bruce Brown (again) to New Orleans.

Lost Jeff Green to retirement. That's three rotation wings who understood their role: space the floor, cut hard, guard 1-through-3, don't need the ball. DeRozan replaces none of those things directly. He needs the ball.

He operates in the mid-post. He doesn't stretch the floor — career 28% from three, 24% last year. So why him? Because the Nuggets' offense died whenever Jokic sat.

Christian Braun and Peyton Watson are lovely athletes who can't create for others. Julian Strawther shows flashes but disappears for weeks. DeRozan gives Denver a legitimate second creator who can run the offense for 12-15 minutes a night without Jokic on the floor. That's the whole thesis.

Why This Move Matters More Than People Think The West isn't getting softer. Oklahoma City added Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein. Minnesota kept their core. Dallas traded for Klay.

The Lakers. exist. Denver's window with prime Jokic is now — not two years from now, not "when the young guys develop. " Jokic turns 31 next February.

Murray's knee is a perpetual question mark. Porter Jr. has never played 70 games. DeRozan buys certainty.

He's played 70+ games in 11 of 15 seasons. He shows up. He prepares. He's the guy who texts rookies at 6 AM asking if they want extra shots.

The Nuggets locker room needed that voice after losing Green's presence and KCP's quiet professionalism. The playoff dimension Here's what the analytics crowd misses: DeRozan's mid-range game works* in the playoffs. When defenses shrink the floor, take away threes, and pack the paint — the exact adjustments every good team makes in May — DeRozan's shot profile becomes valuable. He shot 52% on mid-range twos in the 2022 playoffs with Chicago.

54% in 2023. The math changes when the game slows down. Denver's playoff losses the last two years? Minnesota clogged the paint.

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Phoenix doubled Jokic relentlessly. Both series featured extended stretches where Murray was the only perimeter creator. DeRozan changes that equation. How The Fit Actually Works (And Where It Breaks) Offense: The Jokic-DeRozan two-man game This is the part that keeps me up at night — in a good way.

Jokic at the elbow, DeRozan on the block. Two of the five best post-playmakers in basketball.

• DeRozan draws a double, kicks to Jokic at the nail, Jokic finds the open shooter
• DeRozan isolates, scores over smaller defenders, kicks out when help arrives
• Handoff actions that put both defenders in jail We saw flashes of this with Jokic and Paul Millsap in 2019-20. DeRozan is a significantly better scorer and passer than Millsap ever was. The ceiling is terrifying. The spacing problem But. Murray needs space to operate. Porter Jr. needs space to catch-and-shoot. Aaron Gordon needs driving lanes. DeRozan's defender will sag 8-10 feet off him. That's three defenders packing the paint when Jokic has the ball. The counter: DeRozan as a screener. He's willing. He's smart. He sets legal screens that create genuine advantages. And in lineups with Jokic off the floor — DeRozan, Murray, Braun, Watson, Gordon — the spacing is actually fine because Murray and Braun demand attention. Defense: The elephant in the room DeRozan has never been a good defender. At 36, he's not becoming one. He's slow-footed, gets caught on screens, and gambles for steals that leave his man open. The Nuggets know this. They're betting that: 1. Braun and Watson cover his assignment on the perimeter

2. Gordon slides to the wing, leaving DeRozan on the least threatening offensive player
3. Jokic's rim protection (career-high 1.3 blocks per 36 last year) erases mistakes It's a scheme-dependent solution. Michael Malone is one of the three best defensive schemers in the league. If anyone can hide DeRozan, it's him. But in a seven-game series against Oklahoma City's speed or Minnesota's size? That's the worry. What Most People Get Wrong About This Signing "He's just a volume scorer on empty calories" Stop. DeRozan's career true shooting is 56.5% — league average for his era. Last year: 58.2%. He draws fouls (6.2 attempts per 36), protects the ball (1.8 turnovers per 36), and makes the right pass (4.1 assists per 36 with a 2.3 assist-to-turnover ratio). The "inefficient chucker" label died in 2018. "He clogs the lane for Jokic" Jokic played his best basketball with Millsap, a non-shooting big who operated in the same spaces DeRozan likes. The difference: DeRozan passes better* out of the post. He's not a black hole. He's a hub. "The money could've gone to a 3-and-D wing" Name one available 3-and-D wing who takes the mid-level exception and moves the needle in a playoff series. I'll wait. The market was dry. Denver's options were DeRozan, Buddy Hield (worse defender, older, no creation), or betting on internal development. They chose the known quantity. "Two years is too long for a 36-year-old" The second year is a team option. If DeRozan falls off a cliff, they decline it and create cap space for 2027. If he's still useful, they keep him at $19M — below market for a 20-point scorer. Zero downside. What To Watch For In 2026-27 The minutes distribution Malone has historically staggered his stars. Expect: Jokic plays 34 minutes, DeRozan plays 28, with 10-12 minutes of overlap