Denver Nuggets: Don’t compare Mason Plumlee to Jusuf Nurkic

The Denver Nuggets made a mistake by trading Jusuf Nurkic to Portland, but they still have use for restricted free agent Mason Plumee.

The Denver Nuggets made a mistake. They traded away a potential star in Jusuf Nurkic and they didn’t get much back in return. To be fair, the Nuggets had discovered that Nurkic and Nikola Jokic couldn’t share the floor together. Nurkic made matters worse by not embracing his backup role.

They had to trade him, but did they have to trade him to a division rival? And did they have to give up a pick just to get Mason Plumlee?

This is unfair to Mason, of course. It’s an unfortunate side effect of the trade: Plumlee is a fine basketball player and a serviceable backup. But some Nuggets fans might measure his production against the results of that trade. Choosing Jokic over Nurkic was wise, but Nurkic is a beast. Plumlee is simply a backup big.

In his short time with Portland, Nurkic unlocked a new level of play. He used the turmoil in Denver to his advantage, turning the situation into mental ammunition. On March 28, Denver went to Portland for arguably the most important game of the season for either team.

Nurkic played this game with a fiery rage and he eviscerated the Nuggets’ interior defense. This was the one-on-one matchup he had been waiting for: the Bosnian and the Serbian. Former teammates suddenly turned rivals. Jokic had been playing superb basketball of late, but Nurkic worked him all night long. He finished the game with 33 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks on 12-of-15 shooting from the field.

For the Bosnian Beast, every second on the court was approached with a chip on his shoulder. Every basket was seemingly laced with a healthy dose of “I told you so.” I’m sure what words that actually came out of his mouth that night were less friendly.

Portland would win the game and leapfrog Denver for the eighth spot in the Western Conference standings. The Trail Blazers never looked back and Denver missed out on the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. It was a classic revenge game for Nurkic. For Mason Plumlee though? Not so much. Plumlee was invisible that night, finishing with zero points and just one rebound in 16 minutes off the bench.

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When you put the trade in a vacuum, it was as lopsided as they come. But again, this isn’t fair to Plumlee. Nurkic threatened to become a genuine distraction in the locker room. Denver needed him gone, and they needed a backup center. That’s the role that Plumlee was there to fill. He was never asked to fill Nurkic’s shoes and you’ll see that reflected in whatever money Plumee does get from Denver this summer.

The Nuggets extended a qualifying offer to Plumlee and he’s currently mulling it over. Plumlee might be inclined to accept this offer: Nerlens Noel just accepted a qualifying offer from the Dallas Mavericks after entering the summer with hopes of a max deal. At this point, the market has dried up for big men. If Noel can’t secure a big money deal, it’s hard to imagine Plumlee striking gold somewhere.

Of course, that’s just one way of looking at the situation. Accepting that one-year deal is essentially a bet on oneself. A player believes they deserve the big money and they have every intention of showing you how the following year. As Daniel Lewis of Denverstiffs.com pointed out, next year’s free agent crop of big men is a stacked one:

"“Here’s why I think Plumlee will not sign his qualifying offer. In 2018, the NBA free agency market for centers could include the following players: DeAndre Jordan (player option), Brook Lopez, Enes Kanter (PO), DeMarcus Cousins, Clint Capela (restricted free agent), Greg Monroe, Jusuf Nurkic (restricted free agent), Derrick Favors, and now Noel.”"

He goes on to explain that it’s unlikely Plumlee garners any serious interest from teams with those guys available. He very well may be right about that. If Plumlee is looking for a long-term deal, next year might not be the time to strike. But again, his prospects don’t look great for this year either. If he declines the offer, Denver can offer him a long-term deal so long as it’s a relatively cheap one.

I’ll borrow from Dan again here:

"“They can afford to make a team-friendly offer to Plumlee, paying him under $10 million per year for three or four years. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a four-year, $28 million offer be placed on the table for Plumlee.”"

If the contract is in that neighborhood, Denver could be in a great spot.

That’s a good deal to lock down a player who fills what actually is a very important role in backup center. Plumlee isn’t Nurkic, but Denver doesn’t need him to be. They need a guy who is willing to play hard off the bench and accept what it means to play behind Nikola Jokic.

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The phrase “role player” can occasionally have a negative connotation ascribed to it. As if a player is simply but a role player and no more. But that’s not true; these roles are ones that need filling. Denver lost that trade, but Mason Plumlee can still be valuable to the Nuggets.