Nuggets GM Calvin Booth Says Team Will Be ‘OK’ If Kentavious Caldwell-Pope Doesn’t Return

After the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft, Denver Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth met with reporters to discuss the DaRon Holmes II pick. He was also asked about Kentavious Caldwell-Pope‘s future. 

Caldwell-Pope is expected to decline his 2024-25 player option and enter unrestricted free agency. 

“Yeah I think you have to look at everything and the nature of free agency is that he’s unrestricted,” Booth said. “So we can try to bring him back and if he doesn’t want to come back or opts to go somewhere else, that’s his prerogative. So we’ll have to work with that.

“So I think we’re prepared to like plug and play so to speak. When you look at some of the teams that have been good in the past, they had to find a way to replace fourth, fifth starters, sixth men off the bench and still keep rolling. It would be nice if he’s back, we’d have a lot of continuity together, but all the stuff I’ve looked at with lineup stuff and everything, Christian Braun is one of the best net rating guys in the league, as is KCP.

“So I think if he’s to step into the starting lineup, I would project that we’ll be OK if KCP doesn’t return.”

Caldwell-Pope averaged 10.1 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.6 blocks in 2023-24 while shooting 46.0% from the field, 40.6% from beyond the arc and 89.4% from the foul line. 

The Nuggets, who won the 2023 championship against the Miami Heat in five games, lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round of this year’s playoffs in seven games. 

Caldwell-Pope has played for the Detroit Pistons, Los Angeles Lakers, Washington Wizards and Nuggets. He holds career averages of 11.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.3 blocks. 

KCP is a two-time NBA champion. He won the 2020 title with the Lakers at the Walt Disney World bubble versus the Heat in six games.