DeMar DeRozan is officially off the board.
The six-time NBA All-Star swingman DeRozan has decided to sign with the Denver Nuggets in free agency, Chris Haynes of NBA TV reported on Friday. DeRozan had been an unrestricted free agent after being waived by the Sacramento Kings earlier this offseason.
Shams Charania of ESPN adds that DeRozan’s deal with the Nuggets is for one year and $3.9 million (representing the veteran’s minimum).
DeRozan, who turned 37 earlier this month, has 17 seasons of NBA experience under his belt. Once a consistent 25-ppg scorer in the prime of his career, DeRozan still managed to produce respectable averages last season of 18.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game on 49.7 percent shooting from the field for Sacramento.
But DeRozan had been unsigned up to this point due to concerns over his age, his ball-stopping style of play, his inability to regularly hit three-pointers, and his (further) declining defense. We learned earlier this week too that DeRozan had a notable demand with his desired free agent contract (that he since appears to have come off).
But the Nuggets, a 54-win team last season, quickly emerged as a surprise new suitor for DeRozan after losing forward Peyton Watson a few days ago in a multi-team sign-and-trade. Now a deal with the former All-NBA selection DeRozan has materialized rather quickly.
DeRozan himself seemed to indicate in recent weeks that a more poetic landing spot was in the works instead. But now DeRozan is headed to Denver to team up with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, possibly as a contender to start at small forward but more likely as a high-octane scorer off the bench.
