In 2023, the Denver Nuggets won the franchise’s first NBA championship. Of course, they were led by now three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, but many played a role in that title. Since that title win, the team has lost some key parts of that team. Could one of them, Bruce Brown, return to a Nuggets team he won a ring with?
2023 Champion An Option To Return To The Denver Nuggets?
Bruce Brown Has Played For 3 Teams Since Leaving The Nuggets
In the 2023 offseason, Denver lost both Brown and Jeff Green in free agency. Those two combined to average 43.7 minutes per contest coming off the bench during their 2023 postseason run. The following offseason saw them lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to the Orlando Magic in free agency. He had been the team’s starting two guard for the previous two seasons.
With two straight exits in the second round of the playoffs, the Nuggets are looking to reach their former heights. Bennett Durando of the Denver Post named some players that the team could look to add in the offseason via free agency. One of those players was a Nuggets fan favorite in Bruce Brown. Durando writes,
”…Nobody wants to wear a Nuggets uniform more than this guy. His market is difficult to predict after a season disrupted by injuries. But he already got paid once. Maybe now’s the time to be sentimental. This is absolutely a realistic potential signing.”
While still a very good player, Brown hasn’t been quite as impactful in the two years since leaving Denver. Now 28 years old, he signed a two-year, $45 million contract with the Indiana Pacers in the 2023 offseason. In January of 2024, Indiana traded Brown to the Toronto Raptors in the deal that netted them Pascal Siakam. At this year’s trade deadline, Brown was shipped to the New Orleans Pelicans as Toronto added Brandon Ingram.
This past season for Toronto and New Orleans, Brown appeared in 41 games while posting averages of 8.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists. The seven-year veteran shot 42.1% from the field, 33.3% from beyond the arc, and 81.5% from the free-throw line.
Top Reserve On Denver’s 2023 Championship Team
The 2022-23 season was the only year that Brown was donning a Nuggets jersey. He signed a two-year deal with them in the 2022 offseason, but the second year was a player option which he declined.
While he started 31 games for the Nuggets, that was when they weren’t at full-strength. He came off the bench in all 20 playoff games en route to the title, but on average played more than half of those games (26.5 minutes). His 11.5 points per game that year are still a career-high, and he upped that average to 12.0 in the playoffs.
Brown will be an unrestricted free agent during the upcoming offseason. He likely can be had for less than what Indiana signed him for back in 2023. It is likely that most Nuggets fans would not be against bringing back Brown for the 2025-26 season.
Photo credit: © Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
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