The Denver Nuggets made it official on Sunday. They matched the two-year, $12 million offer sheet the Oklahoma City Thunder put in front of Spencer Jones. So the 25-year-old forward is staying put, and the Nuggets front office clearly thinks he’s worth the investment.
ESPN’s Shams Charania broke the news first. “The Denver Nuggets are matching the Oklahoma City Thunder’s two-year, $12 million offer sheet on Spencer Jones, retaining the key forward in restricted free agency,” Charania wrote on X. He added that the team valued keeping a homegrown guy they signed as an undrafted free agent in 2024.
Jones isn’t a glamour name. He’s not going to pop up on SportsCenter top plays every night. But the Nuggets see him as part of their long-term plan, and this move backs that up. Last season he played 64 games, averaging 5.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in 22.1 minutes a night. Those numbers don’t jump off the page. But context matters.
Denver dealt with a ton of injuries last year. Aaron Gordon missed time. Peyton Watson was in and out. Cam Johnson and Christian Braun both had extended absences too. Jones stepped into those gaps and held his own. He brought toughness and physicality, which is exactly what you need from a forward who isn’t asked to carry the scoring load.
This feels like a bet on development. Jones showed enough flashes — especially on defense and on the glass — that the Nuggets weren’t willing to let him walk for what the Thunder offered. Two years, $12 million is real money for a guy who went undrafted. But in the current NBA cap environment, that kind of deal is also manageable for a team that likes what they’ve seen.
Oklahoma City made a smart play trying to poach him. The Thunder have cap flexibility and a roster built for the future. Jones would have fit their young, switchable system. But Denver matched, and now Jones stays in a system he already knows, with teammates he’s already built chemistry with.
More details on the contract structure could come out in the next day or two. But for now, the Nuggets locked in a guy who proved he can be a dependable rotation piece. That’s not a headline-grabbing move. It’s the kind of move that quietly stabilizes a roster.
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