Denver Nuggets: Rumored Interest In Daniel Gibson

Seeking help beyond the arc, the Denver Nuggets are rumored to be interested in free agent guard Daniel Gibson.

Gibson, a 6’2” 27-year-old guard from the University of Texas, has spent his whole NBA career with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Cleveland chose to not re-sign him this offseason when he became a free agent.

Last season in Cleveland, Gibson averaged 5.4 points in 20 minutes per game for only 46 games. His importance to the team has declined due to the youth movement established with the front office and coaching staff, which has made players such as Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters and Anthony Bennett the future of the team.

Denver may see Gibson as someone to fill a void left behind by Andre Iguodala, who left the team this summer for the Golden State Warriors, and by forward Danilo Gallinari, who will not be able to play for a good part of the beginning of the NBA season due to his ACL injury suffered right before the playoffs last season.  Gibson made his name in the NBA by his outside shooting, particularly when the Cavaliers made it to the NBA Finals in 2007, and he averaged 8.3 points per game and shot 40.9 percent from beyond the arc. He also went on to participate in a 3-point competition at All-Star weekend in 2008.

The difficulty in adding Gibson to the roster is that the Nuggets have already reached the maximum limit on players for a roster with 15. If Denver sees Gibson as enough of an asset to add to the team, they would then have to shed one spot off the team in order to make it happen. With the guard position up in the air, Gallinari’s injury and no true stability in the frontcourt, every player currently on the roster has a chance to prove their worth, which would make it difficult for the team decide on which player to let go this early before the season begins.

The only player that the team may be willing to show interest in putting on the trade block is Anthony Randolph, but it may be difficult to deal him since he hasn’t lived up to his potential as many believed he would at this point in his career. With the additions of Randy Foye and Nate Robinson, the team may be in a better place for outside shooting. However, Gibson could also see his percentages increase in Denver where he would have much more help than he has had in Cleveland the past couple years.

Looking in areas to get better is never a bad route to take, and Daniel Gibson may provide that for Denver. Whether to provide depth at the end of the bench or give Foye and Evan Fournier a run at their spot in the rotation, the Gibson addition can improve the Nuggets in some ways that may be overlooked by many.

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