Denver, CO
Nuggets Sign Former Bucks Guard to Training Camp Deal
The Denver Nuggets have made a new addition to their training camp roster.
According to Keith Smith of Spotrac, the Nuggets have agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with James Akinjo.
The Denver Nuggets have signed guard James Akinjo to an Exhibit 10 contract, a league source told @spotrac.
— Keith Smith (@KeithSmithNBA) October 14, 2025
Akinjo is a smaller, 6-foot-1 guard who’s been a part of multiple G League squads since being undrafted in 2022, and was among those on the Milwaukee Bucks training camp roster before the 2024 season tipped off.
During his last season in the G League, alongside Milwaukee’s affiliate, the Wisconsin Herd, Akinjo averaged 15.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, 8.1 assists, and 1.7 steals, shooting 43.6% from the field in over 37 minutes a night. He’s played in 63 total G League games on four different squads since entering the league in 2022.
Before joining the league, Akinjo was a four-year college player who split time with Georgetown, Arizona, and Baylor, where he would spend his final year of eligibility. In his final year at Baylor, Akinjo was selected to Third-Team All-America as a part of the Bears’ 2022 Big 10 championship team, averaging 13.5 points and a conference-leading 5.8 assists.
Following his Exhibit 10 signing, Akinjo will likely be waived from the Nuggets before the regular season begins, and is expected to sign with Denver’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold upon his release.
The Nuggets have already signed-and-waived multiple names from their training camp roster to move onto their G League roster later this season, including Terrence Hargrove Jr. and Coleman Hawkins, as well as Javante McCoy and Justyn Hamilton. Now, Akinjo is the latest to fill into that list.
The purpose of a sign-and-waive for Akinjo is to allow him to receive an additional roster bonus before reporting to Denver’s G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold for the season, joining fresh after his best season yet onboard with the Herd.
The Nuggets will need to finalize their official 18-man roster before their regular season campaign kicks off later next week. They’ll have two preseason games on the horizon vs. the Chicago Bulls and the OKC Thunder ahead of taking on their first of 82 on the road vs. the Golden State Warriors.
The Nuggets are declining Jalen Pickett’s fourth-year team option for the 2026-27 season, releasing him from his contract, league sources told The Denver Post.
Former Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth drafted Pickett with the 32nd overall pick in 2023. The 6-foot-2 reserve combo guard has struggled to break into Denver’s everyday rotation throughout his first three years in the league.
His $2.41 million salary next season would’ve offered the Nuggets a sliver of cap relief, but they chose instead to move on from the former Penn State star. Monday was the deadline to make a decision on his option.
Pickett, 26, averaged 5.2 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 16.1 minutes per game last season. He appeared in 50 games, highlighted by a career-high 29-point, seven-assist performance in January to lead the Nuggets in an upset over Philadelphia without their entire starting lineup.
Pickett is shooting 38.7% from the 3-point line on two attempts per game in his first three years. He also boasts a sturdy 3.63 career assist-to-turnover ratio.
But he’s remained a deep bench option under two different head coaches in Denver, from Michael Malone to David Adelman. Booth was fired in April 2025. Then, new co-general managers Jon Wallace and Ben Tenzer signed veteran point guard Tyus Jones off the buyout market late last season when the Nuggets wanted ball-handling depth. Jones received playoff minutes over Pickett during their first-round series against the Timberwolves.
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Firefighters say a car crash was the cause of a large fire that broke out north of the Denver International Airport on Saturday afternoon.
The Brighton Fire Rescue District says a vehicle was traveling through the area of E. 120th Avenue and N. Watkins Road around 2 p.m. when it crashed. Fortunately, the people inside the vehicle did not suffer serious injuries, but the fire department says the vehicle’s catalytic converter caught the nearby grass on fire.
The 120 Fire quickly grew, and firefighters responded with engines, brush trucks and water tenders to attack it from multiple sides. Multiple agencies responded to assist as the winds continued to push the fire across the grassland.
It covered around 237 acres by the time firefighters brought it under control around 3:30 p.m. BFRD says firefighters continued to put out hotspots and monitor a large cottonwood tree that was smoldering nearly 30 feet up the trunk.
With Independence Day approaching, the fire rescue district shared a reminder that a single spark can ignite a fast-moving grass fire. They added that aerial fireworks are illegal in Brighton and pose a serious fire risk in the current conditions.
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