Monday was about fit and risk and value.
Nuggets fan are wondering who, if any, of the new players coming to Denver in the Ty Lawson trade will fit — or even stay. They’re wondering whether the Nuggets got fleeced in the deal, which jettisoned a player once thought of as “face of the franchise” material.
In Houston, questions swirl about just how formidable Lawson could make the Rockets, a team that made it to the Western Conference finals last season. Can the Rockets trust Lawson to get past his vices and help them take the next step to the NBA Finals?
“There’s risk all over the place,” Rockets general manager Daryl Morey conceded, but spent most of a conference call with media beaming about Lawson.
“A lot of what we were hoping to accomplish before next season, he’s able to do,” Morey said. “He’s another guy that can attack the basket, can shoot, can make plays for others. He’s one of the best playmakers in the league.”
Lawson, who’s in alcohol rehabilitation after a second DUI-related arrest in six months, is thrilled to be joining a powerhouse team. So said his agent, Happy Walters, on Houston television station KRIV.
“He’s close with James (Harden), tight with Corey (Brewer), knows Trevor (Ariza) and Dwight (Howard) and is real excited,” Walters said. “He’s been deep in the playoffs before, but this is something he feels really good about.”
The trade, finalized Monday, brings Joey Dorsey, Nick Johnson, Kostas Papanikolaou, Pablo Prigioni, a protected 2016 first-round draft pick and cash considerations to Denver. The Nuggets sent a 2017 second-round draft pick to the Rockets, in addition to Lawson. (The Nuggets immediately waived Prigioni.)
What is known is that rookie Emmanuel Mudiay, 19, is the Nuggets’ starting point guard now.
Mudiay turned heads with his performance in the Las Vegas summer league, where he averaged 12 points, 5.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals in four games.
“Emmanuel and I talk a lot,” first-year Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. “We watch film, we look at clips. Offensively, the game comes very easy for him. He has a great feel for the game, has a great poise for such a young kid.”
Less clear is how any of the new players fit with the Nuggets. They have 12 guaranteed contracts, with a 13th (guard Erick Green) set to have his deal guaranteed Aug. 1. Simple math says the Nuggets won’t keep many of the newcomers.
So who stays and who goes?
Papaniklolaou’s contract becomes guaranteed Oct. 4, which would be right after the start of training camp. Papanikolaou, 6-foot-8 and 225 pounds, played in 43 games as a rookie, averaging 4.2 points and 2.7 rebounds. Dorsey is going into the final year of his contract, which pays him about $1 million. Johnson is in the second year of a four-year deal; he will receive $845,000 next season.
Dorsey, a 6-8, 268-pound forward, played in 69 games for the Rockets last season. He averaged 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 points. Johnson, a 6-3, 200-pound guard, averaged 2.6 points and 1.4 rebounds as a rookie.
Roster spots are at a premium, and the Nuggets have decisions to make on whether to keep any of the newcomers — and whether to continue to pursue free agent Darrell Arthur, and possibly court summer league star Ian Clark.
Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly declined to comment on the Lawson trade but will speak at a news conference Wednesday.
Christopher Dempsey: cdempsey@denverpost.com or
