Nuggets’ $207 Million Champion Surprisingly Ranked Among NBA’s Most Overpaid Players

Nuggets’ $207 Million Champion Surprisingly Ranked Among NBA’s Most Overpaid Players originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Denver Nuggets have had a busy offseason thus far as they have made multiple additions to their lineup with hopes to win another championship next season.

Since winning the championship in 2023 behind their star trio of Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon, the Nuggets have slightly declined which has led to back-to-back second-round playoff exits.

Because of this, they elected to make additions to their roster this offseason that began with them sending Michael Porter Jr. to the Brooklyn Nets for Cameron Johnson.

By trading Porter Jr., they opened up enough cap space to sign Tim Hardaway Jr. and Bruce Brown in free agency and acquire Jonas Valanciunas from the Sacramento Kings via trade.

With this new-look rotation, the Nuggets are expected to be a title contender next season but they will need their core to lead the way next season.

Jamal Murray named among NBA's most overpaid players

Among the players they will need to lead the way is Murray who was recently named as one of the NBA’s most overpaid players by SB Nations’ Ricky O’Donnell.

“Murray is more important to the league’s championship picture than almost any other player in the NBA. Is Murray still good enough to be the second-best player on a championship team? That’s the big question for a player who has still never been an All-Star and already seems to be declining a bit physically,” O’Donnell wrote. “The Nuggets desperately need him to perform like the big shot playoff hero he’s been in the past, and that requires him to be in tip-top shape. The Nuggets have more firepower around Jokic this year with Cameron Johnson leading a foursome of new additions, but this is only a championship contender if Murray is near his peak.”

Of course, Murray is signed through the 2028-29 season and he will be making $207.8 million over that span, which is a ton of money for a player who has never been an All-Star or All-NBA selection.

Despite this, Murray was a key piece to Denver’s championship run in 2023 and he is a perfect fit next to Jokic in the starting lineup, though his numbers have slightly declined over the past few seasons.

While that may be the case, the 28-year-old guard is still Denver’s second option and he will look to help lead the Nuggets back to the NBA Finals this season alongside Jokic and Gordon.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 12, 2025, where it first appeared.