The Denver Nuggets had a number of key pieces that led to them bringing the organization their first NBA Championship. Veteran guard Bruce Brown played a big role off the bench, and was rewarded in a huge way by another team on the first day of NBA Free Agency Friday.
Brown thrived in his first season in Denver, recording 12 points per game along with 4 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 20 postseason games for the Nuggets last year.
These kinds of numbers were obviously impactful and helped the Nuggets in the postseason, but they don’t exactly point to Brown becoming a future star in the league. However, the Indiana Pacers went ahead and paid him like a star once NBA Free Agency kicked off.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the Pacers have agreed to terms on a two-year $45 million contract that will bring Bruce Brown to Indiana.
ESPN reporting with @malikaandrews: Free agent Bruce Brown has agreed on a two-year, $45M deal with the Indiana Pacers, his agents Ty Sullivan and Steven Heumann of @CAASports tell ESPN. Denver — limited in what it could pay — loses a key piece to its repeat hopes.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 30, 2023
It is certainly a pretty penny for the Pacers to spend, and many fans clearly think that they overpaid for the former Nuggets role player.
the Pacers are paying Bruce Brown how much??? pic.twitter.com/LilwUi9yKu
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) June 30, 2023
Contracts for the next 2 Seasons:
Jalen Brunson: 2 Years, $51.3M
Bruce Brown: 2 Years, $45MRemember when everyone said Brunson was overpaid? pic.twitter.com/t8NhxSsk2S
— KnicksMuse (@KnicksMuse) June 30, 2023
Fun fact: Bruce Brown has a higher average salary than Domantas Sabonis and Dejounte Murray. pic.twitter.com/o5PfwSTnRK
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 30, 2023
Bruce Brown saw $22 million a year for 2 years and hyperventilated
— Ahmed/The Ears/IG: BigBizTheGod 🇸🇴 (@big_business_) June 30, 2023
Bruce Brown earned a total of $15.1 in his career before signing with Indiana.
Life changing money for the NBA Champion. https://t.co/TK1Gddz8FW
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 30, 2023
Bruce Brown was a great Nugget and a fun and integral piece of the first ever NBA championship Nuggets team. He’ll be remembered as fondly as any player to spend just a single season in Denver.
— Adam Mares (@Adam_Mares) June 30, 2023
While it does seem like a questionable move by the Pacers on paper, ESPN’s Zach Lowe did add that the second year of the contract does contain a team option, meaning they can get out of the deal after only one year.
Bruce Brown's contract with the Indiana Pacers contains a team option in Year 2, sources tell ESPN.
— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) June 30, 2023
Brown clearly showed this postseason that he can be a valuable piece to a winning team. That being said, the Pacers’ environment will likely be far different for him than he has been used to in Denver without the likes of Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray taking pressure off him offensively.
