Getty Nuggets guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Reading the tea leaves of Calvin Booth’s season-ending Nuggets press conference last week, it certainly appeared as though he was laying the ground work for the likely departure of starter Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who can be a free agent this summer. On one hand, he cited the paralyzing nature of the NBA luxury tax and the so-called “second apron,” which Denver would exceed if they re-sign KCP without dumping salary elsewhere.
On the other hand, he pumped up reserve guard Christian Braun as a potential starter for the Nuggets. Braun is a shooting guard. If he is to be a starter next season, there’s no doubt whose place he’d be taking, even if Braun has yet to show he can perform in the postseason.
Now, to be clear, Booth was asked a straightforward question on whether Braun could start. He gave a reasonable answer, via the Denver Post:
“He obviously has the intangibles and the physical strength and athleticism and defense (to be a starter). And he’s gonna have to make some improvements, as he has, shooting the ball. But I don’t know how you could see a player in his second year that’s done what he’s done and not think he has a chance of starting. He’s ahead of schedule in that regard.”
Christian Braun’s Playoff Shooting an Issue
The problem is not whether Braun has a chance at eventually starting. The problem is that starting him in 2024-25 as a replacement for Caldwell-Pope would set back the vaunted Nuggets starting five considerably.
That’s the view from estimable Denver Post columnist Sean Keeler, who pointed out that Braun was expected to take Bruce Brown’s place off the bench last season, and came up decidedly short. To expect Braun to take Caldwell-Pope’s place as a starter makes little sense.
“Here’s what I’m not doing: Anointing Christian Braun as my new fifth starter come the fall, my new No. 1 wing guard, and assuming that everything will be just fine. It won’t. Not without some serious — and potentially expensive — veteran back-filling on the bench should you elect to promote Braun from it,” Keeler wrote.
The only way starting Braun could conceivably happen would be if the Nuggets went out and spent money on a knockdown shooter to come off the bench. Of course, ideally, Braun would develop into that himself. He did shoot 38.4% from the 3-point line last year, but attempted only 2.0 3s per game.
And in the playoffs, he was brutal. He shot just 20.0% from the 3-point line in last year’s Nuggets championship run, and (ahem) improved all the way to 22.2% from the arc this year.
Nuggets Payroll May Prevent KCP Re-Signing
But there is that dreaded second apron, as well as the likelihood that a team will shell out $20 million per year for KCP in free agency.
The most serious suitor may be the Sixers, who have the cap space to add a maximum-contract player plus a key role player. And as a 3-and-D wing who has won two championships and has shot 40.6% from the 3-point line over the last four seasons, there are not many role players better than Caldwell-Pope.
One league exec projected Caldwell-Pope to get three years and $60 million on the market.
“The Sixers are going after a big name, like a Paul George or a Jimmy Butler if he comes available,” one Eastern Conference GM said. “But they’re going to put almost just as much attention on adding a role player, too. They’ve run through a lot of guys playing with Joel (Embiid) but they know they need a two-way guy, a guy who can create some space by shooting the 3.
“There are a few guys on the market who will be interesting as shooters—Klay Thompson, Gary Trent, Bruce Brown—but you are not going to get a better two-way guy than KCP. That’s the guy you want with Jo and Tyrese Maxey. So, if I’m the Nuggets, the Sixers are the serious danger here.”