As free agency looms, Denver’s decisions start with Millsap

As Nuggets coach Michael Malone sat at the media dais at AllStar weekend in Charlotte this past February, one consistent theme ran through his responses while fielding questions from reporters.

Malone felt that the All-Star Game could serve as the franchise’s coming out party.

“I think it’s great for our staff to be around all these guys, learn from them, get to know them,” Malone said then. “I’m using this as a weekend for people to get to know us, know what I mean? Because we think that Denver is on the verge of something special and hopefully some people are going to want to be a part of that.”

Malone was there as the coach of Team LeBron. Assistant Wes Unseld Jr. led the World Team in the Rising Stars challenge. Sue Bird and Monte Morris helped steer the Celebrity Game. And amid all the revelry of the NBA’s showcase weekend, the Nuggets announced extensions for president of basketball operations Tim Connelly and GM Arturas Karnisovas. But as helpful as it was for Denver’s staff to get facetime with the league’s biggest stars, none of those sold the future of the Nuggets quite like first-time All-Star Nikola Jokic. His wry sense of humor, not to mention his selfless play, endeared him everywhere he went.

When Malone stated the franchise’s intended goals, it was a footnote during a high-profile weekend and was vastly overshadowed by Anthony Davis’ trade request, as it should’ve been. But now that the summer is