Denver Nuggets executive breaks silence on champion player's loss

The Denver Nuggets haven’t had a great offseason so far. Set to lose Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency to the Orlando Magic once the contracts are officially signed, the Nuggets have yet to find a replacement for the guard who started 152 regular-season games and 32 postseason games for Denver over the last two years.

While Denver still has arguably the best player in basketball in Nikola Jokic, the rest of the Western Conference continues to improve, which only increases the pressure on the Nuggets.

Speaking to reporters recently, Nuggets assistant general manager Tommy Balcetis discussed the complications the league’s new collective bargaining agreement has brought to free agency, and how that has had a direct impact on Denver’s outlook regarding the loss of Caldwell-Pope.

“The free-agent market is still ongoing, so nothing is set in stone, obviously. But in general, the NBA is on the verge of changing a little bit right now because of the new rule changes and the new CBA,” Balcetis said, per Bennett Durando of the Denver Post. “I think it’s going to be a fun challenge for a lot of teams. We’re trying to get ahead of the curve on a lot of things. I think there’s going to be some missteps along the way for every team, to start calibrating where the CBA is going to take us.”

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope intends to sign a three-year, $66 million contract with the Orlando Magic, sources say @TheAthletic @Stadium. A massive transfer for the Magic on the rise, with the acquisition of the starting guard of two NBA champion teams. pic.twitter.com/fhu04mauIx

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 30, 2024

While Balcetis couldn’t speak directly about Caldwell-Pope due to his deal with Orlando not being finalized, he did address the CBA in response to a question about the sharpshooting guard.

As for how this new collective bargaining agreement will work, Balcetis added to the Denver Post: “We’re trying to not just be in the game with everybody. We’re trying to be better than everybody, and that means finding a specific advantage. We’re in the room trying to figure that out.”

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