Nuggets find replacement for Bruce Brown
Apr 20, 2021; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Brooklyn Nets forward Bruce Brown (1) during warms ups before the game against New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
The Denver Nuggets have found a successor for Bruce Brown within a 48-hour span.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported Sunday that the defending champion Nuggets have agreed to a free agent deal with journeyman wing Justin Holiday. The 34-year-old Holiday will be getting a one-year contract.
Brown, an integral member of Denver’s NBA title team this past season, left in free agency earlier this week after getting a stunningly large contract from an Eastern Conference team. The Nuggets, who are deep into the luxury tax, were never going to be able to compete with an offer like that for Brown.
Holiday has a slightly different skillset than Brown and was an afterthought off the bench for both of his teams last season (Atlanta and Dallas). But he brings some scoring punch (10.1 points per game in 2021-22) and is better than 36 percent on three-pointers for his career. On top of that, Holiday is 6-foot-6 and can defend multiple wing positions.
Denver has had a decent offseason thus far, re-signing both Reggie Jackson and DeAndre Jordan (though Jeff Green and Thomas Bryant also just left as free agents). The combination of Holiday and Christian Braun off the bench should be able to help replace what Brown brought to the table for them.
