Christian Braun has been an instrumental element to the Denver Nuggets’ success since they drafted him in 2022. Ever since he stepped on the floor as a rookie, he brought a level of effort and competitive fire to the hardwood that few other players in the league had.
When the Nuggets called on Braun to step into a bigger role last season following the departure Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, he did just what they needed. He bumped up his points per game north of 15 a night, he shot a career-high 58% from the field, 39.7% from distance and 82.7% from the free throw line. His offensive jump came while he was still defending the best guard on the other side of the floor night in and night out.
The No. 21 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft has been everything the Nuggets needed and more over the last three seasons. Now, as he’s entering the final year of his rookie contract, and he needs the Nuggets to repay the favor by giving him his well-earned payday. The only problem with that, however, is that he’s expected to command more money than one might think.
Christian Braun is expected to command $25–30 million per year on his next contract, per @JakeLFischer
“Rookie scale extension discussions around the league continue to feature various players pursuing deals with an annual average value of $30 million in advance of the Oct. 20… pic.twitter.com/1IHPc7ikOu
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 10, 2025
According to recent reports fr0m NBA insider Jake Fischer, the 24-year old could be in for a new deal that has an average annual salary in the neighborhood of $30 million, with the low end of the deal being around $25 million. If the Nuggets front office is looking to get a deal done — something they didn’t comment on at media day recently — they have to do so within the next 10 days, as the deadline to extend first-round picks from the 2022 Draft is Oct. 20.
That number would make Braun the fourth-highest paid player on Denver’s books next season, behind Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon. If he were getting paid that much this season, he would be the third-highest, as Aaron Gordon is making just short of $23 million this year. Other players under contract for next season include Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Zeke Nnaji, DaRon Holmes, Julian Strawther, Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson.
Especially after the Nuggets just got off the rookie contract extension that Michael Porter Jr. was signed to back in 2021, that number certainly brings back some memories of how much one contract can hurt the construction of a team. However, if fans looked around the league next offseason, they wouldn’t be able to pick out many other 2-guards who can do what Braun does on a nightly basis. Yes, that number is a lot, but he is too valuable to this team to let walk out the door.
If they fail to get an extension done, Braun would be in line to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season. This would give the Nuggets the chance to match any offer sheet he would receive from another team next offseason.
The Kansas product said that he doesn’t ‘want to be anywhere besides being a Denver Nugget’ at media day. The only way that comes true if he, his agent and the Nuggets brass can meet somewhere in the middle on a deal to keep him in the Mile High City.
