According to salary cap expert Yossi Gozlan, writing in his Third Apron Substack column, the Denver Nuggets are set to become subject to the NBA’s repeater luxury tax starting next season.
This status will significantly increase the team’s luxury tax obligations, with their tax bill expected to more than double, reaching approximately $42.9 million.
This sharp rise in tax payments reflects the financial challenges the Nuggets face as they maintain a competitive roster under the current salary cap structure.
Gozlan also highlights another hurdle for Denver in managing its roster flexibility: the team has very few draft assets available to include in potential trade deals.
While the Nuggets currently control five of their first-round draft picks spread out over the next seven years, league rules restrict their ability to trade these picks freely.
Specifically, Denver can only trade one of those first-round selections in either the 2031 or 2032 draft, limiting their short- and medium-term maneuverability.
Furthermore, their only second-round pick available for trade is in 2032, which is quite far in the future and less valuable in the present.
This scarcity of tradable draft assets complicates Denver’s efforts to offload undesirable contracts or create salary flexibility through trade.
Nuggets Notes: Porter, GM Candidates, Durant, Repeater Tax https://t.co/OTTOlBvfB7 pic.twitter.com/cjbf7QsWlq
— Hoops Rumors (@HoopsRumors) June 8, 2025
