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Nuggets Finally Find A Backup For Nikola Jokic

Originally posted on Last Word On Sports
By Quenton S Albertie | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 1:49 PM ET

On Tuesday, the Sacramento Kings agreed to trade Jonas Valanciunas to the Denver Nuggets in exchange Dario Saric, ESPN senior insider Shams Charania.

Nuggets Finally Find A Backup For Nikola Jokic

This move could have just been a cost-cutting one for the Kings.

To that point, Saric is on a $5.4 million expiring contract. Conversely, Valanciunas will earn $20.4 million over the next two seasons (his 2026-27 salary is only partially guaranteed). On top of that, the Kings and Dennis Schroder agreed to a three-year, $45 million contract on the second of the 2025-26 NBA free agency moratorium period, according to Charania.

However, the trade was undoubtedly about much more than that for the Nuggets.

The Sacramento Kings are trading Jonas Valanciunas to the Denver Nuggets for Dario Saric, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/D2Xmbm4DN1

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2025

For years, Denver’s been determined to add a solid backup for Nikola Jokic.

As he’s the Sun to the Nuggets’ solar system, said center might not get to play a wealth of minutes. However, because Jokic’s highly gifted and has a distinct skillset, it’s been imperative that they have a talented pivot behind him on the depth chart. The second that the three-time NBA MVP sits, Denver’s offense freezes over.

The Value Of Jonas Valanciunas

All of that being said, Valanciunas is a dynamic big man with great size at 6-foot-11 and 265 pounds. He can score from all three levels, create for others and is a beast on the boards. At the defensive end, he’s respectable when asked to guard in the phone booth. Over the past four seasons, he’s averaged 13.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 0.7 blocks per game.

He may not stop the point-clotting that regularly occurs when Jokic is on the bench. Yet, he’s someone who can help keep the wheel spinning, even if he’s not driving the offense. With Jokic now on the other side of 30, that’s more important than ever.

This article first appeared on Last Word On Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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