It was reported that the Nuggets had every intention of re-signing Mason Plumlee this off-season after trading for him at the 2017 NBA trade deadline, but as the summer passed and restricted free agency market, especially for centers, was ice-cold, Plumlee remained on the market with little to no rumors or chatter about any potential suitors.
He really did seem to be the forgotten man in 2017 free agency.
That has changed, and somewhat surprisingly at this point, the Nuggets agreed to bring Plumlee back with a three-year, $41 million contract.
ESPN story on Denver, Mason Plumlee reaching deal on $41M contract. https://t.co/07syVXgRDn
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) September 18, 2017
While Plumlee is a very active player who plays with a great deal of effort and is one of the better passers at the center position, paying almost $14 million per season for a back up center seems a little foolish.
The Nuggets will start Paul Millsap and Nikola Jokic, and they already have Darrell Arthur, Juan Hernangomez, Trey Lyles, Tyler Lydon and Kenneth Faried in their frontcourt rotation at the moment, so re-incorporating Plumlee back into that seems a little odd.
Lydon may stay in the G-League and Faried may finally be dealt, but paying Plumlee an exorbitant contract for the 2017 off-season (timing is everything, contract figures are relative) when there was virtually no market for that kind of deal for a player of his caliber at his position, seems like the Nuggets overpaid for no reason.
As they try to return to the playoffs in 2018, having Plumlee doesn’t make the Nuggets a slightly better team next season.
