As much as Jon Wallace and Ben Tenzer wanted to talk about the Nuggets\u2019 pair of second-round draft picks, there were more pressing topics Wednesday night at Ball Arena.<\/p>\n
The Nuggets\u2019 executive tandem wasn\u2019t as eager to talk about the ongoing negotiations with key pieces of last year\u2019s rotation, but that doesn\u2019t mean the questions weren\u2019t asked.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s start with Nikola Jokic, who will receive a super-max extension in early July. Tenzer said league rules prevented him from discussing the details. He referred to Jokic\u2019s comments that he wants to be a Nugget \u201cforever\u201d after Denver was eliminated by the Timberwolves in six games.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve heard what he said about his happiness here,\u201d Tenzer said. \u201cWe feel really comfortable with that relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
It would be a shock if Jokic didn\u2019t agree to the extension this summer. Peyton Watson\u2019s situation is a lot more complicated. As a restricted free agent, Denver has the opportunity to match any offer sheet the 23-year-old receives, but they would have to shed salary elsewhere to do so and avoid the second apron, which appears to be operating as a hard cap for just about every NBA team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe feel good about where that\u2019s at,\u201d Tenzer said. \u201cWe hope Peyton\u2019s here a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Watson\u2019s not the only restricted free agent. Spencer Jones, who started last season on a two-way contract and received a promotion to a standard contract in the middle of last season, is in the same boat, though his next contract will be much cheaper than Watson\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpencer\u2019s done himself a lot good, a lot of favors this past year, specifically how he stepped in, defended, made shots,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cHe was just a big part of what we did, but we feel confident. He\u2019s a homegrown guy. You want to reward those guys with them sticking to the plan and really developing themselves. We feel confident where we are.\u201d<\/p>\n
The last bit of housekeeping came down to Jalen Pickett. The Nuggets have until Monday to decide on the reserve guard\u2019s team option worth $2.4 million for next season. Denver will need end-of-bench players on cheap contracts, and Pickett has proven to be capable of eating regular-season minutes without issue.<\/p>\n
\u201cStill evaluating,\u201d Tenzer said.<\/p>\n
Free agency unofficially starts on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
![\"(From](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/050926-dg-news-Nuggets-4-1024x683.jpg\")
From left: Jonathan Wallace, executive vice president of player personnel; Ben Tenzer, executive vice president of basketball operations; Josh Kroenke, vice chairman of KSE; and Nuggets head coach David Adelman answer questions from the media during an end of season press conference at Ball Arena on Friday, May 8. Stephen Swofford, The Gazette<\/p>\n
(Stephen Swofford, Denver Gazette)<\/p>\n
What I\u2019m Thinking<\/strong><\/p>\n After 60 picks, the NBA draft has a few big winners and losers.<\/p>\n Winners<\/p>\n Atlanta<\/p>\n The Hawks managed to get a potentially elite one-and-done talent in Kingston Flemings and a more experienced big who could make an immediate impact in Zuby Ejiofor on Tuesday. Then, Atlanta selected Henri Veesaar, who many had pegged as a top-25 talent with the 52nd overall pick on Wednesday. If Veesaar doesn\u2019t have some undiscovered red flags, no team did better than Atlanta.<\/p>\n San Antonio<\/p>\n The Spurs had the benefit of seeing what the Thunder did with their picks, selecting Aday Mara at 12 and trading up to get Bennett Stirtz at 16, and responded appropriately. San Antonio correctly took a boom-or-bust swing on Jayden Quaintance at 20 and used a few of its many second-round picks to add an immediate contributor in Tarris Reed Jr., in the event Quaintance needs something of a redshirt season. Anything San Antonio gets out of second-rounders Ja\u2019Kobi Gillespie and Maliq Brown is free money.<\/p>\n Chicago<\/p>\n The Bulls got their business done in the first 15 picks and took a couple of swings that could turn out to be home runs. Caleb Wilson, the fourth overall pick, and Dailyn Swain, selected 15th, have the tools outperform their draft position \u2013 as long as they develop into serviceable jumpers. Chicago rightfully embraced high-upside picks at this part of their process, and could\u2019ve hardly done better selecting two players with certifiable star potential.<\/p>\n Losers<\/p>\n Phoenix<\/p>\n Not only did Phoenix select a player who should\u2019ve returned to college to refine his game, the Suns parted with three second-round picks to get the flawed prospect. Peat is strong, but there are concerns how that muscle works at the NBA level with him standing just 6-foot-8 and not being a shooter. He should get ample opportunities to prove the doubters wrong as part of a limited Phoenix frontcourt.<\/p>\n Denver<\/p>\n The Nuggets had a player capable of making an impact next season sitting right in front of them and decided to play the long game. That meant letting San Antonio, a roadblock to Denver\u2019s path back to the Finals for the foreseeable future, swoop in and select Reed for a few second-round picks. The Nuggets spent one of those on Trevon Brazile and later picked Bryce Hopkins. It\u2019s a coin flip whether or not either of the second-rounders become impact guys, while it\u2019s almost certain Denver\u2019s going to need a new backup center to replace Jonas Valanciunas.<\/p>\n New Orleans<\/p>\n Hey, it could\u2019ve been a lot worse for the Pelicans. After trading their first-round pick without any protections to Atlanta during last year\u2019s draft, New Orleans breathed a sigh of relief when the pick came in eighth overall. That left the Pelicans with one pick this year, the 58th overall, which they used on Jaron Pierre Jr. At least they didn\u2019t trade away Trey Murphy III to get their original pick back, but Pierre was a high-volume, low-efficiency chucker in college.<\/p>\n What I\u2019m Hearing<\/strong><\/p>\n Nuggets assistant J.J. Barea will coach Denver\u2019s team at Summer League. Barea played 14 years in the NBA and was a member of the Mavericks 2011 championship squad. He joined David Adelman\u2019s staff prior to last season.<\/p>\n What They\u2019re Saying<\/strong><\/p>\n A video from the Nuggets\u2019 draft room, seemingly showing a moment of confusion, made the rounds on social media after it was shown on the ESPN broadcast right before the Nuggets traded the 26th overall pick to San Antonio. Denver\u2019s lead executives tried to explain that the uncertainty came down to some miscommunication with the Spurs\u2019 front office.<\/p>\n \u201cIt looked like there was more of a miscommunication on our end. \u2026 It\u2019s a pretty chaotic environment in general,\u201d Tenzer said, adding the online reaction led to a few smiles.<\/p>\n \u201cThose moments happen all the time. It\u2019s just a lot going on.\u201d<\/p>\n Wallace put it in simpler terms.<\/p>\n \u201cIt got blown out of proportion is what he\u2019s saying,\u201d he said. \u201c<\/p>\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t an internal issue by any means.\u201d<\/p>\n Wallace also spoke about DaRon Holmes II\u2019s development. Given the Nuggets\u2019 salary situation guys like Holmes, who played sparingly last season after suffering a torn Achilles at Summer League in 2024, and Julian Strawther could become much bigger parts of the rotation.<\/p>\n \u201cAnytime you have an injury the way he had, it goes beyond just the physical. So, it was in a place where we didn\u2019t want to push him mentally and make sure he trusted his body, he felt comfortable but also giving him the ability to do it at his pace. I think he should be commended for the way he stayed true to it, because a lot of guys don\u2019t really return to their same form in that sense,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cOn top of that, he\u2019s been here every day since the season ended, working on his shot, working on his conditioning, working on his mobility. He\u2019s a very important factor in terms of his lethal shooting ability. Anytime you can do that, you can find a place on the floor, but as we continue to develop his game, we\u2019ll see how he fits in with other guys, but we\u2019re very pleased with his development at this point.\u201d<\/p>\n What I\u2019m Following<\/strong><\/p>\n
![\"Denver](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/AP26011859605901-1024x683.jpg\")
Denver Nuggets forward Daron Holmes II (14) in the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo\/David Zalubowski)<\/p>\n\n
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