Injuries forced Spencer Jones into a much larger role last season in Denver, he started 37 games for them. However, most fans may best remember him as the guy who dropped 20 in Game 5 against the Timberwolves in April, keeping the Nuggets’ season alive another game.
Oklahoma City was impressed enough with all of it to sign the restricted free agent to a two-year, $12 million offer sheet, a story first reported by Michael Scotto of Hoopshype and confirmed by other reports. Both years of this offer sheet are fully guaranteed.
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Denver now has 48 hours to match. That might seem like a no-brainer for the Nuggets, who have struggled with depth issues — you keep a 6’7″ wing who is a strong on-ball defender and shot 39.6% from 3-point range last season. Except, because the Nuggets are in the repeater tax (and still have to work out a deal with their other restricted free agent, Peyton Watson), bringing back Spencer on even this reasonable a deal hits the bottom line hard.
Denver still should match this, but if they don’t, we know why.
If Denver lets Jones walk, the Thunder will be hard-capped at the second apron and be about $842,000 below that number (with a full roster of 15 guaranteed contracts), as noted by Keith Smith of Spotrac. The Thunder are only able to offer this deal — for the taxpayer mid-level exception — because they were far enough under the second apron to do it after the Lu Dort trade.
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Denver is now on the clock.
