The Denver Nuggets were set to pay $10 million to big man Jonas Valanciunas if he was still on the roster after Wednesday.
However, according to a report from Michael Scotto of Hoops Hype, the Nuggets are releasing Valanciunas, and he is expected to have interest from a number of teams across the league.
JUST IN: The Denver Nuggets are waiving center Jonas Valanciunas, league sources told @hoopshype. He had a fully guaranteed $10 million decision today. Denver will now owe Valanciunas $2 million for the 2026-27 season. He’s averaged 12.8 points and 9.0 rebounds in 14 NBA seasons. pic.twitter.com/5KdGxgQL6N
— Michael Scotto (@MikeAScotto) July 8, 2026
Jonas Valanciunas was selected at No. 5 overall by the Toronto Raptors in 2011. He spent the first seven seasons of his career in Toronto before joining the Memphis Grizzlies in the middle of the 2018-19 season.
Jonas Valanciunas then played three seasons in Memphis and three with the New Orleans Pelicans before spending time with the Washington Wizards and Sacramento Kings.
Valanciunas considered leaving Denver for the EuroLeague after being traded last summer, but he ended up playing 65 games for the Nuggets. He averaged just over 13 minutes a game, but he had 8.7 points with 5.1 rebounds and showed that he can be a quality big man off the bench.
Prior to the signing of Kevon Looney, the Los Angeles Lakers were one team linked to Valanciunas. Now that the big man is a free agent, he should draw lots of interest from teams searching for a backup center.
