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Aaron J. Lopez: Ujiri says he's "very optimistic" Afflalo will return. AAA is a restricted free agent and #Nuggets can match any offer. Twitter

Denver Nuggets, Free Agency, Arron Afflalo 

And the charity games keep on rolling in as we wait for lockout negotiations to start up again. Baron Davis and Tina Thompson will be hosting one in Los Angeles this Sunday at Southwest College benefitting the Kids in LA Sports Foundation. On the list to play are some guys with Los Angeles ties — Paul Pierce, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Trevor Ariza, DeMar DeRozan, Nick Young, Darren Collison, Arron Afflalo and the Collins brothers Jarron and Jason. NBCSports.com

Boston Celtics, New Orleans Hornets, Oklahoma City Thunder, Paul Pierce, Darren Collison, DeMar DeRozan, Trevor Ariza, James Harden, Nick Young, Lockout, Russell Westbrook, Baron Davis, Arron Afflalo 

SI.com: The Nuggets have had a crazy offseason, with Nene about to be an unrestricted free agent and three different free agents (J.R. Smith, Kenyon Martin and Wilson Chandler) all in China. Do you want to stay in Denver? Afflalo: The way I moved forward at first was that I just planned on returning to Denver. That was just my feel, because my role had grown so much last season from a leadership standpoint. I felt it was almost my team. I felt a sense of responsibility. But obviously as the offseason goes on and changes are made, you have to weigh your options. My gut at the end of the season was that I’d be back in Denver, but you have to keep your options open. And for me, it’s all about winning. SI.com

Denver Nuggets, Free Agency, Lockout, Arron Afflalo 

SI.com: And the thing is, most of the teams set to have lots of cap room are not going to be contenders next season. The best teams are all going to be over the cap, meaning they might only be able to offer you the mid-level exception. Do you think you’re worth more than that? How do you weigh all the variables? Afflalo: I’d hate to say what I think I’m worth and end up disrespecting someone who says I’m not worth that amount — or disrespecting myself by saying I’m only worth a certain amount. Do I feel I’m worth more than the mid-level? Of course. I know I’m going to continue to improve, and contracts don’t change once you sign them. So from that standpoint, of course you want to say you’re worth $8 million or $9 million, but as you said, when you look at where the contenders are sitting, you have to place a certain value on winning and the situation. The bottom line is that if you’re a millionaire, you’re going to be fine. SI.com

Denver Nuggets, Free Agency, Lockout, Arron Afflalo 

SI.com: The Bulls could use some two-way punch at shooting guard. Have you thought about how you’d fit there? Afflalo: Oh yeah, my agent [Sam Goldfeder] brought that up to me before the lockout. He definitely mentioned the Bulls as a dream that would be great for me based on fit. SI.com

Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets, Free Agency, Lockout, Arron Afflalo 

This was especially evident when I followed up about how to draw the line between holding your ground for the best offer and putting the season in jeopardy? Arron Afflalo: "In all honesty, and it's hard to do, but it takes responsibility on both parties. Obviously, I'm a player and I can only take responsibility from the players' standpoint, but it just takes responsibility from both parties and understanding of that. Until you have a complete understanding that it's not worth it, that sometimes winning a fight will result in a loss. You have to know that. And if you get caught up in the moment and you don't recognize that, regardless of whether you win your battle or not, player or owner, you're gonna do damage. "You have to ask yourself, is that damage worth it. Is that damage worth that win?" ESPN.com

Lockout, Arron Afflalo 

Zach Lowe: Had a long chat with Arron Afflalo today. He used the phrase "usage rate" without me asking a dorky question. He's a secret hoops dork. Twitter

Denver Nuggets, Lockout, Arron Afflalo 

Ken Berger: Breaking in from wedding coverage: players present today are Fisher, Evans, Mason, Ratliff, Bonner plus Afflalo and BDavis (who left). Twitter

Derek Fisher, CBA, Matt Bonner, Roger Mason, David Stern, Lockout, Billy Hunter, Theo Ratliff, NBPA, Baron Davis, Arron Afflalo, Maurice Evans 

The Denver Nuggets have offered contracts to restricted free agents Arron Afflalo, Wilson Chandler and Gary Forbes. The team also said Monday that it has exercised the fourth-year option on guard Ty Lawson. ESPN.com

Denver Nuggets, Wilson Chandler, Ty Lawson, Arron Afflalo, Gary Forbes 

Afflalo, a shooting guard, and Chandler, a small forward, received qualifying offers of about $3 million, two sources confirmed. If the NBA is shut down by a lockout, it's possible the players will seek long-term contracts once the lockout ends. The Nuggets and Afflalo's management have expressed mutual interest in working out a deal. Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Wilson Chandler, Arron Afflalo, Gary Forbes 

Afflalo, one of the NBA’s rising talents at shooting guard, can become a restricted free agent on July 1. He and the Nuggets have built a great relationship, and Afflalo does not anticipate a change of address next season. “I would love to be here. That’s the bottom line,” he said. “Nothing’s guaranteed until it’s guaranteed, but I would love to be here. With that in mind, it’s going to be the first free agency for me. I’m comfortable here and that’s how I’m moving forward.” NBA.com

Denver Nuggets, Arron Afflalo 

alex in chicago: Who are the bulls going to get this offseason at Sg Alex Kennedy: The Bulls are working the phones and monitoring what's happening in Philadelphia and Golden State. It doesn't hurt their odds that both Monta Ellis and Andre Iguodala would welcome a trade to Chicago with open arms. Right now, everyone wants to play alongside Derrick Rose and join the Bulls as they become a perennial contender. That will also help Chicago if they can't land a shooting guard in a trade. They'll have no problem attracting free agents this summer. Their options include J.R. Smith, Arron Afflalo, Jason Richardson, C.J. Miles, Shannon Brown, Anthony Parker, Nick Young, DeShawn Stevenson and Michael Redd. They'll have the full mid-level exception to spend and they'll definitely be throwing money at a shooting guard. HoopsWorld

Chicago Bulls, Free Agency, Andre Iguodala, Michael Redd, Shannon Brown, Monta Ellis, Jason Richardson, Anthony Parker, Nick Young, Arron Afflalo, DeShawn Stevenson 

Goldfeder and Nuggets executive Masai Ujiri have said they see "Triple-A" re-signing with Denver. But that might not be for a while, because the NBA likely will have a work stoppage beginning July 1. "I have confidence that we can get a deal done," Goldfeder said. "There is a very strong mutual admiration between Arron and Nuggets management." Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Arron Afflalo 

To his credit, Afflalo works out like he gets paid by the game. He starts his offseason workouts with conditioning, then adds weight training and two hours of basketball. "I'll tone it down the last week before training camp," the UCLA product said. "I remember in Detroit, and even in my first year in Denver, they used to try to tell me to tone it down a little bit and save something for the game. But in reality, I've been in such a habit for working out for so long, I can do it." Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Arron Afflalo 

"The reality is you don't know who will and won't be back. But more important, you don't know how much better players will be," said Afflalo, a first-round pick in the 2007 draft. "You never know how good Ty (Lawson) can be next year or how good I can be or (Danilo) Gallinari or whoever. "There's a lot of responsibility on the players themselves, or at least I look at it from my career — it's my responsibility to be better than I was the year before. I think that's a really important message. I would hope that all my teammates feel the same way." Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Arron Afflalo 

Asked specifically about Afflalo, an off guard who averaged 12.6 points per game in a breakout season, Ujiri said there's "no question" he will be a Nugget for years to come. Ujiri also said he's had positive talks with forward Wilson Chandler about staying in Denver. Chandler, a restricted free agent, struggled in his first-ever postseason. He was comfortable in the Knicks' system and is willing to look at other options, but the Nuggets like his game and his potential to improve at age 23. Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Arron Afflalo 

Nuggets guard Arron Afflalo said today that he will play Saturday night in game 3 of the playoffs against Oklahoma City. Affalo missed the first two games of the first-round playoff series — as well as 13 of the last 18 regular-season games — with a nagging hamstring injury. Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Injuries, Arron Afflalo 

Two days and four hours before Game 2 of the Nuggets' first-round playoff series, guard Arron Afflalo (hamstring) was asked if he would play Wednesday night against the Thunder. "Zero (percent chance)," he said Monday. "It hasn't even been 10 days yet (of rest). I've made a mistake three times (by coming back). It's not even being cautious, it's just not healed. I've tried to come back in the regular season. I'm trying to get past that marker." Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Injuries, Arron Afflalo 

Asked if he should be ruled out for the series, Afflalo said: "I don't think you should do that. . . . The reality is hamstrings take three to four weeks to really heal without the possibility of retweaking it. But that doesn't mean I can't get out on the court, so I'm going to kind of roll with the series, see how things are looking for us, the position we're in. I will get on the court." Afflalo tweaked an existing hamstring injury in last Monday's game against Golden State and hasn't recovered enough to be cleared to play. It was the second time he had a failed comeback attempt since initially injuring the hamstring March 5 against the L.A. Clippers. "The thing is, three times I've done a 10-day period and came back," Afflalo said. "Obviously, the initial strain was the worst, so coming back after the initial strain was tough. Although that was the one time I did make it through a full game. The other two times were both nine- to 10-day periods, which is where I'm at now, and I tweaked it. Just rest, see how the series starts. There will come a time where I'll have to get out there, but right now we'll see how it goes." Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Injuries, Arron Afflalo 

So would he shut Afflalo down the rest of the regular season to ensure he’s back and healthy for the postseason? “I don’t get involved in those discussions a lot,” Karl said. “Injuries are very frustrating to coaches. I think everybody knows Arron was playing the most minutes of anyone on the team when he got hurt. Fortunately we’ve been able to find other ways to win games. If we’ve got to cover Westbrook and (Kevin) Durant we need Arron on the court.” Denver Post

Denver Nuggets, Draft, Arron Afflalo