And even though both teams have been quiet this summer, it looks like they plan to make more moves before the regular season gets underway. According to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, both the Lakers and Warriors are teams to watch for Bruce Brown.

The report claims the Toronto Raptors are exploring the market for the veteran swingman, who helped Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets win the 2023 NBA championship, as Brown is entering the final year of his contract at $23 million.

“The Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks are two teams that showed interest in Brown last season, sources said, and Los Angeles maintains interest in him this offseason. One team whispered to have interest in Brown and was quietly mentioned as a possible suitor months ago is the Golden State Warriors,” Siegel wrote.

Warriors may be in better position than Lakers to negotiate for Brown

“While unlikely to occur, the Warriors have the ability to move Andrew Wiggins, who is making more than $26 million this season, in a package from Toronto that includes Brown and other assets. This would open up more financial flexibility for the Dubs moving forward,” Siegel added.

Wiggins, 29, has been linked with a move away from the Bay area following a disappointing performance in the 2023-24. He avoided being traded in February, but his name continues to be subject of trade rumors this offseason.

Even though his level declined, Wiggins played a pivotal role for Curry and company not long ago, helping the Warriors win the NBA championship in 2022. Since the Raptors will probably prefer to trade Brown instead of risking losing him for nothing in 2025, negotiating with the Warriors with Wiggins as compensation could make sense.

The Lakers are expected to do something to help LeBron James chase another ring but their potential compensation options may be less attractive. While the players who could be traded might be D’Angelo Russell and Cam Reddish, the team doesn’t have many draft picks to offer.

The Nuggets were a flawless team. Their starting lineup was a match made in heaven, and all the role players stepped up big time in the playoffs, especially Bruce Brown Jr.

The former Brooklyn Net showed his defensive versatility by guarding almost one through five, slashing, cutting, knocking down threes, and being their energy guy on both ends of the floor. Now, he could be a Laker.

Lakers Want To Trade For Bruce Brown Jr.

“From the time the Lakers lost to Denver in the Conference Finals last year, there’s been one player they’ve been focused on acquiring Bruce Brown Jr,” reported Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. “There has been no shortage of teams reaching out to Toronto for Bruce Brown; he fits everywhere. The Lakers are among them. Continue to watch the Lakers with Bruce Brown to see if there’s a pathway.”

Brown’s great play wound up getting him a big contract with the Indiana Pacers in free agency. But now that he’s been dealt up north to the Toronto Raptors, the Lakers could be back in the mix for him:

“He was on the Denver team that eliminated the Lakers, they couldn’t afford to keep him,” said Woj. “In free agency, if Indiana hadn’t stepped up with a two-year, $45 million deal, there’s a very good chance Bruce Brown would have gone to the Lakers for the non-tax mid-level exception. The Lakers have continued to try and trade for him from the Pacers.”

Brown has proven to be a championship-caliber role player. He did trash-talk some of his potential new teammates, but they could bury the hatchet if he helps them straighten the course of the ship once and for all.

The purple and gold were swept by Michael Malone’s men, who went on to win the championship against the Miami Heat. The new season is still months away from us, but the Nuggets are expected to contend again.

Jokic is just getting started, and the team has been able to keep the core that won the ring. However, Denver has also lost a key contributor such as Bruce Brown, which is why Russell thinks they won’t be so successful in 2024.

D’Angelo Russell believes Bruce Brown’s departure will hurt Nuggets

“Losing Bruce Brown hurt them, losing Bruce Brown hurt them though,” Russell said on The Pat Bev Podcast with Rone. “Nah, he [Christian Braun] solid, but Bruce Brown is like unpredictable bro.

“He could go 3-of-5 from the 3, play point guard, get you in the bonus, shoot 10-12 free throws. He’s just a problem, I think. I think any team that wants and appreciates him, he’s only going to get better, respect.”

Following a fantastic performance in the postseason, Bruce Brown landed a two-year, $45 million contract with the Indiana Pacers in the open market. The Nuggets still have most of their championship pieces, but Russell may have a point.

Bruce Brown recently won an NBA Championship and that made him a possible free agent as soon as the Finals were over and as the experts predicted it happened, he will now play in a new team in the upcoming 2023-2024 season.

With Brown’s departure, the Denver Nuggets lose one of their key players, he played a single season for them but that was more than enough to become a player desired by other franchises like the Pacers.

Bruce Brown posted strong career highest numbers during his only season with the Nuggets, 11.5 points per game, 28.5 minutes played per game, .758 free throws and a total of 80 regular season games that helped the franchise reach the finals.

How much will the Indiana Pacers pay Bruce Brown?

According to sources such as ESPN, CBS and other reports, Bruce Brown is expected to play for two years with the Indiana Pacers and his contract will be $45,000,000 during those two seasons, which translates to an average annual salary of $22,500,000.

The Indiana Pacers have not played in the postseason since the 2020-2021 season when they lost the First Round 4-0 against the Miami Heat, and the worst thing is that since 2013 the Pacers have not played in the Conference finals.

It is likely that Bruce Brown has decided to leave Denver for the big pay day that the Pacers are offering him since with the Nuggets he only had a player option of a little over $6m.

The Slovenian star has his entire career ahead of him, so he doesn’t need to be desperate now. Neither does Dallas, but the team cannot waste too much time because, eventually, it could miss out on a great opportunity.

Landing Kyrie Irving wasn’t enough so far, which is why the Mavericks are expected to look for more talent in the offseason. In fact, they could go after a recent champion with Jokic in the Mile-High City.

Rumor: Mavs could land Bruce Brown

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, the Dallas Mavericks could meet with Bruce Brown, who is set to become a free agent after declining his $6.8 million player option with the Nuggets:

“Sources: Bruce Brown intends to meet with the Mavs soon after the opening of free agency. Brown is expected to have several suitors and has not ruled out a return to Denver despite the financial constraints. His market is $12.4M midlevel but Nuggets are limited to $7.8M.”

Brown was a key contributor in the Nuggets’ success last season, which is why he probably won’t be lacking in suitors in the open market. As a matter of fact, the Lakers have already been mentioned as a possible landing spot for the 26-year-old.

Rob Pelinka and the front office will have limited cap space to deal with in the offseason, and keeping their key free agents on the team will be their No. 1 priority.

Nonethlees, that doesn’t mean they won’t be active in the market trying to revamp their defense. With that in mind, Mike Singer of The Denver Post reports that they’re interested in Denver Nuggets star Bruce Brown Jr.

Lakers Are Interested In Bruce Brown Jr.

“One team with significant interest in signing Bruce Brown away from Denver is the Los Angeles Lakers, multiple sources told the Denver Post,” Singer tweeted. “The Lakers could offer him the full MLE ($12.3M annually). Nuggets can only offer up to $7.8M this year.”

Notably, Lakers insider Dan Woike of the L.A. Times later confirmed the report, citing that Brown is the kind of player Pelinka would ‘most definitely’ pursue in free agency:

“The Lakers getting to (and using) the full MLE has been an option the team has strongly considered in recent days,” Woike said. “Bruce Brown is most definitely the kind of player they’d want from a mindset/skill department.”

Even so, the Lakers could face an uphill battle trying to convince Brown to sign with them, as multiple teams are likely to make him more lucrative offers, with experts projecting around $20 million per season.

This year wasn’t the exception to that rule. Several teams made moves they’re likely to regret down the line. So, they’ll either have to buy those players outor trade draft picks, so rebuilding teams agree to absorb their contracts.

Nonetheless, other teams managed to find great value on players that could’ve signed much bigger deals than they did. Here, we’ll discussthem and let you know the three biggest NBA offseason bargains.

The 3 Biggest NBA Offseason Bargains

3. Nic Claxton – 2 Years, $17.5 Million

The Brooklyn Nets lacked rim protection for most of the year. Eventually, Steve Nash realized that Nic Claxton was their best shot at not getting outrebounded on both ends of the glass, and he was by far their best interior presence.

Claxton is by no means an offensive factor other than his rim-running and putbacks. But he’s the kind of defensive anchor they need. He’s still young and could turn out to be a Robert Williams III type of player for the Nets.

2. Bruce Brown – 2 Years, $13 Million

Signing Bruce Brown Jr. for roughly $6.5 million per year was a massive win for the Denver Nuggets. They needed to add depth to their backcourt, and he can have a huge role for them even when Jamal Murray comes back.

Brown can guard multiple spots on the floor. He’s also a great slasherwho can play on and off the balland has improved as a shooter. Nikola Jokic won’t have any trouble finding him with his constant baseline cuts, and he’s an excellent rebounder for his height and position.

1. James Harden – 2 Years, $68.6 Million

Ok, maybe saying that James Harden is a bargain at $34+ million per year is a bit of a reach. But it’s James Harden we’re talking about here. Even at his age and coming off a down, injury-riddled year, he could’ve asked for a max contract, and he didn’t.

The Philadelphia 76ers made some big moves by adding P.J. Tucker and De’Anthony Melton as well. Harden is reportedly in the best shape of his life in the offseason, and he showed his commitment by taking a significant pay cut to improve the roster.