The Nuggets have their core four locked up.

Aaron Gordon is signing a four-year, $133 million contract extension that will keep him under contract in Denver through the 2028-29 season if he chooses, league sources confirmed to the Denver Post. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the news.

Gordon, 29, had a player option in his current contract that would have given him the opportunity to become a free agent next offseason. Instead, the power forward’s new contract extension includes an opt-in on his $22.8 million salary for the 2025-26 season, league sources said, giving the Nuggets significant luxury tax relief for this season.

Gordon will receive his maximum salary plus bonuses for the following three seasons. The extension includes a new player option in 2028, before the final year of the contract, and a trade kicker. According to a source, the salary structure also increased during these three seasons. Gordon’s cap hit will be just under $32 million in 2026-27; $34.5 million in 2027-28; and $37.1 million in the 2028-29 season with the player option.

With Jamal Murray’s max extension also taking effect next year, the Nuggets have committed an estimated salary of $163.3 in 2025-26 between four players: Gordon, Murray, Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. in total There are 13 players provisionally under contract for this season, but two contracts include player options (Russell Westbrook and Dario Saric). Denver is now an estimated $7.1 million below the second tax limit next season.

The Nuggets acquired Gordon in a blockbuster trade with Orlando in the 2020-21 season, sending Gary Harris, RJ Hampton and a 2025 first-round draft pick to the Magic. Gordon left his previous role as a lead scoring option and learned to complement center Nikola Jokic in a frontcourt partnership that became synonymous with the Nuggets’ success. During their 2023 playoff run, Gordon guarded a duel with Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Jimmy Butler en route to the first championship in franchise history.

In three and a half seasons and 241 regular season games for Denver, Gordon averaged 14.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists. According to Basketball Reference, he has drained the ball 512 times as a Nugget, accounting for 22.3% of his field goal attempts with the team. He thrives at the dunker spot, particularly in a pick-and-roll set between Jamal Murray and Jokic that leaves defenses vulnerable to alley-oops when the defensive line has to advance to neutralize Jokic’s efficient floater.