What’s next for DeMar DeRozan? Nuggets’ strategy emerges after $3.9 million deal

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DeMar DeRozan has joined the Denver Nuggets on a one-year, $3.9 million veteran minimum deal. Now the question is how he will be used.

ESPN’s Shams Charania confirmed the agreement. And the early word is that DeRozan will not be in the starting five.

That would be a shift. Per Jake Weinbach, the plan is for him to lead the bench unit instead.

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DeRozan expected to come off the bench for Denver

‘DeMar DeRozan is expected to come off the bench for the Nuggets after agreeing to a one-year, $3.9M minimum deal,’ Weinbach wrote. ‘Christian Braun will likely retain the starting shooting guard position, with DeRozan leading the bench unit in Denver.’

The rest of the starting group was never really in question. Jamal Murray, Cameron Johnson, Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic hold the other spots, and Braun was a settled part of that unit after signing a five-year, $125 million extension last October.

What Denver missed was a reliable second-unit scorer, someone who could create offence without relying on Jokic. That gap became pressing when the team lost Peyton Watson to Cleveland in a sign-and-trade.

DeRozan fits that role well. He posted a career-efficient true shooting percentage of .594 on 18.4 points a night for Sacramento, giving Denver a bench closer rather than a fifth starter.

Not everyone agrees with the plan. One projection of Denver’s line-up had DeRozan starting outright at shooting guard, pushing Braun to the bench, on the argument that the Nuggets want their five best offensive players on the floor from tip-off.

DeRozan has started every game he has played for 17 straight seasons, and coach David Adelman has not publicly committed either way. What is agreed in every report is his value to the roster.

Jokic, Gordon and Murray were all reportedly involved in recruiting him, a detail Chris Haynes reported that shows the buy-in is already there no matter what his role looks like on paper.

For DeRozan, it means a fraction of his market value for a genuine shot at a championship he has chased across 17 seasons and almost 27,000 career points.

He was waived by Sacramento last month after trade talks stalled, and chose Denver for its contender status over several other suitors. Start or bench, the move gives the Nuggets a proven scorer to pair with Jokic’s playmaking either way.

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