They realize this year could be tough because, even when Murray does return, he's going to be rusty. And they didn't want to risk MPJ being tempted to leave for a contender. They think Jokic/Murray/MPJ is good enough to win a title going forward.

Are they right? Time will tell, I guess. But in a league where so many teams shy away from spending unless they're already presently in title contention, I respect Denver for saying, "For better or worse, this is where we wanna be for the next 5 years." And that core is all still young, they can definitely build to something special if all breaks well.