Trading Ty
Ty Lawson and the Nuggets were a bad marriage in need of an annulment. Everyone knew it before Lawson’s second DUI arrest in six months, and everyone especially knew it afterward.
This deal accomplished that permanent separation, and considering how low Lawson’s trade value had fallen over the last few weeks, it’s amazing Denver was able to get any trade complete, let alone one that netted them such a decent return.
TNT’s David Aldridge reported that Denver will waive Prigioni, which makes sense with rookie Emmanuel Mudiay and veteran Jameer Nelson on board for the long-term. Even though the Nuggets didn’t get a single starter in return, they bolstered their bench with a few players that can contribute aside from the obvious benefit of handing Mudiay the keys.
Daryl Morey making a splash, adding Ty Lawson to the Rockets. Mudiay's era in Denver can start without that distraction
— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) July 20, 2015
Pablo Prigioni and Kostas Papanikolaou, who were both acquired in the deal, were waived to save the Nuggets from paying their soon-to-be guaranteed contracts.
Joey Dorsey is slightly undersized for the center position at 6’9″, but he’s a physical player who doesn’t mind a little contact and can help on the boards. Nick Johnson probably won’t ever be a star, but he’s only 22 years old, he’s pretty athletic, he can play both guard positions and he’s a committed defender.
Nabbing a future first rounder made this a pretty sizable haul for a player who was just arrested on suspicion of drinking and driving not long ago. The desire for a name like Donatas Motiejunas or Terrence Jones to be included in the deal is understandable, but that probably wasn’t realistic with Lawson’s trade value being as low as it was.
Still, the biggest thing gained from the Lawson deal is being able to fully turn over the franchise to rookie Emmanuel Mudiay, who will undoubtedly be named the starter from Day 1 and won’t have to worry about a potentially negative influence. Jameer Nelson should be a good mentor for Mudiay and now the rebuilding process can truly begin.
This deal makes Denver a worse basketball team for 2015-16, but trading Lawson was necessary for this team to move forward and with a potential superstar like Mudiay waiting in the wings, Connelly accomplished his biggest task of the summer — and got a pretty decent return out of it.
Grade: B-
Next: The Return Of Gallo