When veteran swingman Will Barton elected to decline a player option worth $14.7 million in mid-July, reports indicated that there was hope, both for Barton and the Denver Nuggets, that a deal could be reached to keep the 30-year-old in Colorado. In the opening minutes of free agency on Monday evening, word broke from Chris Haynes that the partnership between player and team will continue with a reported two-year agreement worth $32 million.
Free agent guard Will Barton is finalizing an agreement to re-sign with the Denver Nuggets on a two-year, $32 million deal, league sources tell @YahooSports.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) August 2, 2021
Barton has been with the Nuggets for six-plus seasons since arriving from Portland during the 2013-14 campaign. Over that timeframe, he has averaged 13.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game for Denver. Barton enjoyed the best three-point shooting season of his career in 2020-21, converting more than 38 percent of his long-range attempts.
Denver also reportedly came to an agreement with JaMychal Green, strengthening their depth for the 2021-22 campaign.
Free agent forward JaMychal Green has agreed to a two-year, $17 million deal to return to the Denver Nuggets, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. Deal includes player option in Year 2.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 2, 2021
The Nuggets will be entering the 2021-22 season without Jamal Murray, making Barton’s perimeter creation even more important until their star guard returns from injury. While Barton did battle hamstring issues that cost him valuable time down the stretch in 2020-21, he has been a consistently positive player for the Nuggets, and Denver is signing him to a deal that seems to make sense on all sides.
