The overhaul of the Denver Nuggets continues, albeit in this case the shakeup doesn't exactly register on the Richter scale.
Veteran point guard Jameer Nelson is set to decline his player option for the 2015-16 season, according to a report from Shams Charania of RealGM. There remains a chance Nelson negotiates a new deal with the Nuggets, but that's far from a certainty since he'll be an unrestricted free agent.
Nelson's decision is somewhat surprising considering his option is for $2.85 million. That's the second year of a two-year, $5.6-million deal he signed with the Dallas Mavericks last summer, and it seems much higher than the annual salary he'd be able to command on the market.
But Nelson has been clear since he was waived by the Orlando Magic at the end of last season that he wants to play for a contender. That's why he chose Dallas, and it's why it was expected he'd be bought out by the Boston Celtics when traded by Dallas, and then why it was believed he may refuse to report to Denver.
Nelson played the good soldier for the entirety of a disappointing 2014-15, but it seems he may be willing to take a financial haircut to ensure he lands back with a competitive team.
The 33-year-old should still have value as a reserve point guard. In 63 games across his three stops this year, Nelson averaged 8.3 points and four assists while hitting 34.5 percent from 3-point range. Over 11 seasons, the one-time All-Star has averaged 12.2 points and 5.3 assists with a 37.1-percent mark from outside.
