The big name that NBA fans talk about leaving the Denver Nuggets this off-season has been Bruce Brown. However, the underrated name that fans keep forgetting also left is Jeff Green. Nuggets fans were shocked when Green left the team, and even their own players were too.
During Nuggets Media Day, DeAndre Jordan spoke about what it felt like to be back with his teammates after a championship season, but lamented that Jeff Green wasn't returning with him.
"It's kind of hard to want to go somewhere else when you win a title with a group like this," DeAndre Jordan said. "I don't know what Jeff was thinking."
At one point, DeAndre Jordan even tried FaceTiming Jeff Green during Media Day, but Green never answered the phone.
Jeff Green is currently on a two-year, $16 million contract with the Houston Rockets, currently making $8 million for the 2023-24 NBA season. Previously with the Denver Nuggets, he was on a two-year, $9 million contract, earning around $4,500,000 annually. Leading into this season, Green had grossed roughly $84 million in salary throughout his 15-season NBA career. While it's understandable that he'd take such a significant pay increase, nearly double his salary, it's also unfortunate to leave a perfect system.
Between DeAndre Jordan, Jeff Green, and Reggie Jackson, the Denver Nuggets had a very solid group of veterans last season. Now, the responsibility lies on Jordan and Jackson to be that presence in place of Green.
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