The Denver Nuggets were not among the teams “confirmed” as suitors for Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal. However, Forbes’ Evan Sidery linked the Nuggets to Beal on July 6. Moreover, they possess an asset that has increased in value.
Beal was linked to the Miami Heat. Miami made a three-team trade with the Los Angeles Clippers and the Utah Jazz on July 7. That leaves the Heat with reduced spending power.
LA looms with $5.3 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception left, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
However, the Nuggets have access to their bi-annual exception, worth up to $5.7 million. That means they could trump even the best offer among Beal’s rumored suitors. Beal would pair with Jamal Murray in the Nuggets’ backcourt.
Beal’s contract buyout is “imminent,” per PHNX’s Gerald Bourguet on July 6.
Beal averaged 17.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists last season. He also shot 38.6% from beyond the arc during the 2024-25 regular season.
The Nuggets started Christian Braun at 2-guard last season. He responded with a 15.4/5.2/2.6 line with 1.1 steals and a .397 clip from deep. Adding Beal could send Braun back to the Nuggets’ bench or even pair him with Russell Westbrook.
Nuggets Still Face Several Hurdles to Landing Bradley Beal
GettyBradley Beal #3 of the Phoenix Suns reacts against the San Antonio Spurs.
The Nuggets would hardly be alone if they decided to make their rumored interest in Beal more known in league circles.
“Some confirmed suitors for Beal include the LA Clippers — fresh off agreeing to trade Norman Powell to Miami in a three-team deal that will bring back Utah’s John Collins — as well as the Los Angeles Lakers, Milwaukee and Minnesota,” The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer wrote on July 7.
The Athletic’s Fred Katz reported on July 7 that the Bucks, Clippers, Lakers, and Golden State Warriors are among the teams Beal would consider.
As it stands, the trade that hurt the Heat’s prospects of landing Beal boosted the Clippers.
“They have their deepest big man rotation in years, but lost their best shooter,” NBA salary cap analyst Yossi Gozlan posted on X on July 7 following the trade. “They scream Bradley Beal team now.”
The Nuggets’ absence from Katz’s list does not preclude them from Beal’s consideration. However, they also face their own financial hurdles, even with the BAE.
Marks noted they are $1.9 million under the luxury tax threshold.
They are also $5.1 million from the first apron. That already has significant enough implications. But the Nuggets would also risk being “repeaters,” according to Marks, who spent two decades in the Brooklyn Nets’ front office.
“If a team is a taxpayer after having stayed out of tax territory for at least two of the previous four seasons, it pays the ‘standard’ tax rates,” HoopsRumors’ Luke Adams wrote in November 2024. “In 2024/25, those standard tax rates start at $1.50 per dollar in the first tax bracket and increase as a team moves deeper into the tax. By comparison, the repeater rates begin at $2.50 per dollar and are always one dollar higher than the standard rates.”
The Nuggets would be a repeater for the fourth straight season if they finish 2025-26 in the tax.
According to Gozlan on July 1, the Nuggets are hard-capped at the first apron due to the trade. They are $4.2 million below that threshold. The Nuggets would need to shed more salary to access their full exceptions for Beal, but the possibility remains an option.
Nuggets Moved to Get Under Luxury Tax Danger Zone
GettyCameron Johnson #2 of the Brooklyn Nets looks to pass as Jamal Murray #27 and Michael Porter Jr. #1 of the Denver Nuggets defend.
Beal to the Nuggets may be a pipe dream. It threatens to undo the work Denver has done to get out of financial peril this offseason.
They traded Michael Porter Jr. to the Nets for a package featuring Cameron Johnson.
“It gets Denver out from under the luxury tax and opens up its ability to use most of a $14.1 million non-taxpayer midlevel exception,” ESPN’s Shams Charania and Ohm Youngmisuk wrote in June. “The Nuggets followed the move by bringing back free agent Bruce Brown, who agreed to a one-year deal with the team that he helped win an NBA title with in 2023. Brown’s deal is for the veterans minimum.”
Both the shedding of salary and signing Brown, whose value is unquestionable, for the veteran’s minimum speak to a more frugal approach from the Nuggets’ new front office. That could mean they work to stay away from the tax.
If the Nuggets’ trade for Jonas Valanciunas does not end with the big man reporting to the team, that would open up the $14.1 million non-taxpayer mid-level exception.
The Nuggets plan to hold Valanciunas to his contract.
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