Yes, J.R. Smith could have been somewhere else. He acknowledged there were talks, none of which that got serious, with a couple of Eastern Conference teams that would have seen the athletic Nuggets guard signed and traded.
But none of it happened. Smith said today he never truly expected to be anywhere but Denver, and that was validated when he signed a three-year, $15 million deal to stay with the Nuggets a little more than three weeks ago.
“I knew something was going to get done eventually, it was just a matter of time,” Smith said after a workout at the Pepsi Center this morning. “I knew I’d end up in Denver. It’s a great fit for me. It’s a great fit for the team, the city. It’s a good deal on everybody’s part.”
The three years are something Smith said he’s happy about. The guard will be 26 at the end of the deal, and if he continues to progress at his current rate, he could see a very big pay raise in 2011.
“It’s enough to be here and see how we’re going to progress, if we do progress in the next three years,” Smith said. “I think it’s a great term, especially for me in my growth period. And I’m still playing with (Carmelo Anthony) and (Allen Iverson).”
According to Mark Warkentien, Nuggets vice president of basketball operations, Smith’s hard work led to the new deal. This summer, Smith worked with the USA Select team that practiced against the “Reedem Team” in Las Vegas to help prepare them for the Olympics. Smith practiced with the Nuggets’ summer league team, and attended assistant coach Tim Grgurich’s basketball camp for NBA players.
“This guy has spent his summer in the gym,” Warkentien said. “Name me another quality free agent that wasn’t looking for a job that spent his August at (Grgurich’s) camp. It was his work and demonstrated ability to work with our coaching staff to improve that was a compelling piece for us, and a more than an exciting piece for us.”
More than likely, Smith will be asked to reprise his role as an off-the-bench scorer for the Nuggets, which he says he’s fine with. Smith was the Nuggets’ deadliest 3-point shooter and averaged 12.3 points per game in a 2007-08 campaign, which saw his game and confidence improve by leaps and bounds.
He says he brings that confidence with him into this season. Training camp starts Sept. 30.
“I’m a lot more confident,” Smith said. “I’m staying with this team. I know what they want and need me to do as opposed to last season. That was more of an up and down year. I didn’t know if I was going to start or come off the bench or how much time you’re going to get. So, right now I pretty much know my position.”
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
