Second, Jones didn't necessarily want to leave the Mile High City.

"We were talking pretty much since Day One of free agency," Jones agent, Mark Bartelstein, said of the Pacers. "They were very interested. They had a role that they thought he could really add to their team, so it was a lot of interest. (Pacers general manager) David Morway and (president of Basketball operations) Larry Bird put a lot of time and energy into recruiting Dahntay, and ultimately he made a decision that this is the best fit for him."

The result was a four-year contract worth $11 million for Jones to reprise his hard-nosed defensive role in Indiana. The Nuggets now officially have an opening at the starting shooting guard slot, which will almost certainly be filled by J.R. Smith.

"I think ideally he would have loved to have stayed in Denver and continued building on what the team did last year," Bartelstein said. "But, for financial (reasons), it just didn't make sense. And it's a little bittersweet. He would have loved to have stayed with the Nuggets .

"The fans were great to him; he really enjoyed playing for George Karl and with his teammates. But, you know, it's also a business. The Pacers present a great opportunity for him, a big role on their team. After weighing everything, he thought it was the right decision to make."

Meanwhile, there is no shortage of teams interested in restricted free-agent forward Linas Kleiza's services, yet unrestricted free-agent guard Anthony Carter's options appear more limited. The Nuggets can match any offer for Kleiza, and that might scare away some teams. The Nuggets also have interest in Portland forward Channing Frye, but Phoenix appears to be the current front-

runner.

Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com