Nuggets forward Darrell Arthur, beginning the last season of his contract, would love to make Denver his permanent home. (Photo by Hyoung Chang/The Denver Post)
Darrell Arthur’s immediate career wish is simple: He wants to stay with the Nuggets.
Getting there, however, could be more complicated.
Because, while the veteran forward does have a player option for next season that he could pick up and be paid roughly $2.9 million, Arthur will, at least initially, be in search of more security than the one-year plus option deal he received last summer. To do get that he’d have to opt out by the late June deadline and then negotiate a multi-year deal with the Nuggets.
“I definitely want to be here, especially if they extend me three or four years,” Arthur told The Post. “That would be great. Because I love the city, I love the team, I love the direction the coach is going in and the organization. So, I want to be here.”
Asked if he would definitely pick up his option, Arthur said “I don’t know. I have to talk to my agent.”
The danger for the Nuggets in Arthur opting out and becoming an unrestricted free agent is it would also open him up to negotiate with anyone else. And few players on the roster were more coveted than Arthur this season.
Last summer, he nearly signed with the L.A. Clippers, but chose to return to the Nuggets instead. Arthur showed more loyalty to the rebuilding Nuggets by not wanting to be traded at trade deadline, though, again, teams hounded the Nuggets with trade proposals to pry him out of the Mile High City.
Conventional wisdom says Arthur stands to receive a sizeable pay raise in the new world of a rapidly rising salary cap, and he will have earned it through his play this season. Arthur is in the midst of one of his most productive — and active — seasons in the NBA. He’s played in 70 games, the third-most in any season of his career. He’s played in 1,516 minutes, the second-most minutes of any season in his career; and he’s scored a total of 527 points, which are the second-most of any season in his career.
Arthur has played through knee soreness of late, but says in the offseason.
Follow Chris Dempsey on Twitter @dempseypost or email him at cdempsey@denverpost.com
