A good portion of Cam Johnson’s introductory press conference Friday at Ball Arena was spent talking about Jonas Valanciunas.
Co-executives Ben Tenzer and Jon Wallace didn’t have much to say on the matter after there was mutual interest between the veteran center Denver acquired via trade with Sacramento and Greek club Panathinaikos in recent weeks, but the message was clear. The Nuggets expect Valanciunas to be a member of next season’s squad.
“No concerns,” Tenzer, the executive vice president of basketball operations said of Valanciunas potentially not being on the roster.
“We’ve had great conversations with him. There’s been nothing but healthy conversations in terms of him honoring his contract and him excited to be to be a Nugget.”
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The date of Valanciunas’s arrival in the Mile High City is to be determined. He’s on Lithuania’s roster for the EuroBasket tournament, which begins in late August and runs through the middle of September. Players typically report to Denver in late September ahead of training camp.
Valanciunas’s stay in Denver could be a short one. He’s under contract for $10.4 million next season. His $10 million contract for the 2026-27 is not guaranteed, but he’s part of Denver’s immediate plans at a position of need behind Nikola Jokic.
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“One of the biggest things we look for with all the moves is being able to adapt to what the league may throw at us on any given night without sacrificing our baseline, our fundamental approach of the game,” Wallace said of the team’s offseason moves.