Nikola Jokic, Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the past two seasons, renewed with the Denver Nuggets for five years and 264 million dollars, the largest contract in NBA history, US media reported Thursday.
The agreement was announced after the opening of the free agency period, in which franchises can also sign players without a contract.
Jokic, 27, commits in this way to the Nuggets until 2028, with an option to leave the team before the fifth and final season of the contract, the digital media The Athletic and the newspaper The Denver Post reported coincidentally.
According to both media, it is the largest contract in total volume in the history of the NBA, surpassing the 228.2 million dollars for five years that Giannis Antetokounmpo signed in 2020 with the Milwaukee Bucks.
The 2.11 m tall Serbian, considered the best passing center in the history of the NBA, has played his entire career in the Nuggets since he was chosen a distant number 41 in the 2014 Draft.
In the last season, in which Denver was eliminated in the first round by the Golden State Warriors, Jokic averaged 27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game.
After ensuring the continuity of their star, the Nuggets have high aspirations for next season by recovering their other two young figures, point guard Jamal Murray and forward Michael Porter Jr., who missed all of last year due to injury.
In other reports after the opening of free agency, the Washington Wizards agreed to renew their leader, Bradley Beal, for the next five years in exchange for $251 million, according to their agents to ESPN.
Another star who is shaping up to stay on his team is shooting guard Devin Booker who, according to The Athletic, is finalizing his renewal with the Phoenix Suns for the next four years and 214 million dollars.
