Nuggets Announce Big Injury Update on Jonas Valanciunas

It looks like the Denver Nuggets could be getting their veteran backup center back from injury in the very near future.

According to a recent injury report update from the Nuggets, veteran big man Jonas Valanciunas has been upgraded from out to questionable to play vs. the Washington Wizards.

Valanciunas has been out dating back to the end of December when he suffered a calf strain against the Toronto Raptors on the 31st, forcing him out in his first game as a starter in place of the injured Nikola Jokic, giving him a re-evaluation window of four weeks.

However, it looks like Valanciunas is ahead of schedule when it comes to his injury recovery, and might be in line to return in just three weeks to end an 11-game absence to face his former team, the Wizards, on the road in Washington.

Jonas Valanciunas Upgraded to Questionable vs. Wizards

Valanciunas has been one of the many names on the Nuggets roster affected by their recent injury bug, leaving them without several rotational players, especially in the frontcourt, within the past few weeks of the regular season.

Nikola Jokic is still missing time with his knee injury. Cameron Johnson remains out with a knee issue of his own. Christian Braun is rehabbing an ankle injury that's lingered dating back to November. But Valanciunas, who's been in that batch of absences for the past three weeks, appears to be trending in the right direction.

Before going down with his calf injury, Valanciunas had been a productive backup five in limited playing time, averaging 8.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.2 assists while shooting 59.0% from the field in just over 13 minutes a night behind Jokic.

Jan 9, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Jonas Valanciunas (17) during the second quarter against the Atlanta Hawks at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Valanciunas had been eyeing an increased role in the Nuggets rotation once Jokic went down with his hyperextended knee, immediately emerging as Denver's fill-in starter at the five for however long the three-time MVP would be out of the mix. Yet, just one game later, Valanciunas would also be forced to miss extended time himself.

His re-addition into the lineup would bring some much-needed size and frontcourt depth through a stretch in which the Nuggets have desperately coveted it. Considering Denver comes fresh off a game against the Los Angeles Lakers in which they were outrebounded 31-51, getting back Valanciunas could be an extremely valued asset for David Adelman and his rotation.

When asked about whether Valanciunas was ahead of Jokic in his recovery before taking on the Lakers, Adelman said it appeared to look that way, though the process of getting both back on the floor, along with their other injured contributors, varies on a day-to-day basis.

"It looks that way now, but tomorrow it could be different," Adelman said. "He could have a setback with the stress tests that they do. You just want to make sure that we’re doing everything correctly. I really mean this, us winning some games has nothing to do with us holding them out. This is just what it is, their process has been what it is."

It remains to be seen what Valanciunas' official status holds for tip-off on the road in Washington, but if he is indeed elevated to active, the Nuggets would be one step closer to getting this rotation to full health, and for the meantime, find a bit more size and strength in their frontcourt that they haven't had in recent weeks.

Jonas Valanciunas Upgraded to Questionable vs. Wizards

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