Isaiah Thomas Signing Veteran's Minimum Deal With Nuggets
BOSTON (CBS) -- Isaiah Thomas is going to have to wait at least one more year for that Brinks truck.
The free-agent point guard will reportedly sign with the Denver Nuggets for the veteran's minimum, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. The deal is for one year and will pay Thomas $2 million.
The $2 million salary is a far cry, obviously, from what Thomas had hoped for in free agency. It was only two seasons ago when Thomas was a legitimate MVP candidate, averaging a tick under 30 points per game for the top-seeded Celtics in the 2016-17 season.
That season, though, ended with a hip injury, one that delayed his 2017-18 debut until January. Once he did return to the court -- playing for the Cavaliers -- he didn't click with LeBron James and Co. Eventually, he'd end up getting traded to the Lakers. There, he started just one game, coming off the bench in his other 16 appearances. He averaged 15.6 points per game on 38.3 percent shooting from the field and 32.7 percent shooting from 3-point range.
Clearly, Thomas didn't head into free agency at the right time to make "Brinks truck" type of money. But the 29-year-old is betting on himself to have a 2018-19 campaign that reminds the NBA world -- and specifically, NBA GMs -- just how good of a player he can be.
Originally drafted with the final pick in the 2011 NBA Draft, Thomas has played in 473 NBA games for the Kings, Suns, Celtics, Cavaliers and Lakers. He's averaged 18.9 points per game.
