Our Hands Are Ty’d

Will the Nuggets be able to cope with the end of the Lawson era, or is this the beginning of a happier Denver tomorrow?

Daryl Morey is a thief. He could also be described as nuts. However, after trading a lottery-protected first round pick in next year’s draft, as well as four relative unknowns in Nick Johnson, Pablo Prigioni, Joey Dorsey, and Kostas Papanikolaou, the thief moniker would be most applicable. Albeit a risky one, this deal (which included Houston receiving a 2017 second-round pick) should be described as nothing less than a steal for the Rockets, who believe they are ready to overthrow the Western royalty this year. Adding Lawson to a roster that made it to the Western Conference Finals and only lost one key role player (Josh Smith) should make Houston fans salivate.

But what about the Nuggets?

George Karl had a fondness for Ty Lawson from Karl’s days coaching the Nuggets, and he seemed ever determined to trade Demarcus Cousins this offseason. However, Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive had other plans in mind, so the Nuggets never tasted the future that would have contained a potential superstar cornerstone in Cousins. Instead, Lawson was traded for a pick likely between 15 and 30 in 2016 and scraps (or rather, non-guaranteed contracts) to a contender. Ideal is probably the word furthest from the minds of Nuggets fans when describing this trade to their buddies. Ridiculous, maybe. About time, perhaps. Ludicrous, even.

Still, maybe this wasn’t the monumental mistake it would seem if you were solely looking at it from a statistical perspective. Consider a few factors:

Development of Mudiay

Emmanuel Mudiay is an impressive specimen. Not only his basketball skills, but his story. From war-torn Zaire to moving to Texas, then spurning a Hall-of-Fame coach at SMU for a one-year stint abroad, Mudiay has had to mature faster by the age of 19 than most men ever do in the NBA. Now, he has a chance to start as a rookie after being drafted 7th in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Nuggets. With the departure of Ty Lawson, Mudiay and the Nuggets are free to learn together from day 1, a fact that is critically important in the development and progression of a potential superstar point guard, especially in the ridiculously talented pool of point guards that is the Western Conference. Mudiay has a chance to become a leader earlier and could become the face of the franchise almost immediately as Denver tries to reclaim an identity and start looking to compete in the coming years.

Financial Security

In many ways, this move was an investment in the future for the Nuggets. Not only did they shed a cap hit of almost $26 million over the next two years ($12.2M this year), but they received easily movable contracts, with Prigioni already being released. However, Nick Johnson and Papanikolaou are both rookies with some potential, so they may very well ease their way into the rotation as role players within the next year or two. Papanikolaou showed a tendency for stuffing the stat sheet, averaging 4.2 PPG, 2.0 APG, and 2.7 RPG in just 18 minutes per contest. It wouldn’t be difficult to see him putting up several 10-5-5 games in Denver, which is something every single team in the league wants to see out of a role player. Plus, if he doesn’t work out for them this year, the Nuggets don’t have to extend a qualifying offer, thus increasing their cap space by nearly $6 million in 2016-17. The Nuggets have about $29 million locked up in guaranteed money for next offseason, so they are bound to be potential players for at least second-tier free agents.

Team Chemistry

Lawson’s behavior has been a distraction, and not a pleasant one, for the mile-high basketball squad. It’s conceivable that keeping him around, regardless of the excellent production, was going to hurt the team much more than it helped. If culture improvement was an offseason goal of coach Mike Malone, he’s hit his target with this move (and may still make more yet). It’s critical to surround young players with experienced veterans who know how to navigate the troubles surrounding the life of an NBA player off the court. Lawson was simply not a good role model to the team’s youngsters. This was a move that had to be made, regardless of how well his career year went last season.

All in all, this was a great fit for both sides. While it presumably sets Denver back in the playoff race for 2016, they were never realistically going to challenge the likes of New Orleans, Dallas, Phoenix, and Utah for the bottom seeds. This was more than likely going to be another lottery season, so it’s best that they doubled up on first-round picks for next year and paved the way for the youth movement to develop while still being able to compete in the free agent market frenzy of 2016. Mike Malone has his team [almost] exactly where he wants it now.