Malik Beasley hasn’t seen consistent minutes for the Nuggets lately, but head coach Mike Malone insists that the current rotation decisions are not set in stone.
“I think our players understand the importance of staying ready because I’m going to go back to Malik,” Malone said (via Mike Singer of The Denver Post). “Malik could play 25 minutes tomorrow night and help us win the game.
“By no means is anybody written off, we believe in all of our players, but it’s my job when we’re struggling to find something that maybe gives us a better chance.”
Here’s more from Denver:
- Michael Porter Jr. won’t improve without playing meaningful minutes regularly and Singer (separate piece) examines whether the Nuggets should make a trade to free up playing time for the second-year wing. Beasley and Juan Hernangomez are both restricted free agents this summer, so perhaps trading one of two makes sense.
- Nick Kosmider of The Athletic breaks down why the Nuggets are taking it slow with Bol Bol, who is on a two-way contract with the club. Denver wants to see Bol play within a system. Through his first 154 minutes in the G League, the rookie center hasn’t had one assist, which is something that seems problematic given Malone’s free-flowing game plan.
- The Nuggets don’t have a G League team, though they do have an interesting agreement with the Windy City Bulls with regard to their two-way center, Kosmider relays in the same piece. The franchise mandates that Bol receives a certain amount of minutes per game when the big man is with Chicago’s G League squad.
Nuggets fan here. I feel like the time is now to really go for a splash. You have millsaps big expiring deal. Gary Harris and will Barton both have reasonable deals. Hernangomez and Beasley as talented restricted free agents. I would love for them to consolidate a few players to get better. Not sure who is out there. Jrue Holiday. Kevin Love. DeMar DeRozan. Not saying I like all those guys, but porter is too good to not contribute.
Holiday would be good, depending on what they gave up so would Love. I think DeRozan would be a downgrade.
Derozan could operate independently from Jokic, which would set him apart from the other Nuggets. Might be a good thing in the playoff’s latter stages. Then again, Derozan is not noted for second-season success.
Murray, Harris & Barton have apent the last four seasons getting better on defense but worse on offense. Morris & Beasley just got worse. Their reaction to Derozan may not be positive given their sacrifices.
Hard to say without knowing what it would take to get him. I think he’d be a good fit as a 6th man, but if he wants to start I’d rather cash in more chips and get someone like Jrue
Of the Spurs players, weren’t the nugs linked to Aldridge on this and other sites? A LMA for Milsap Contract + Young asset would be interesting.
i agree. the nuggets have too much talent
I originally thought they would end up with Beal before he signed the extension
Sixers and a bunch of other teams would love to get Malik.
Nuggets have drafted outstandingly. They are simply missing intangibles. Raptors before Kawhi.
Nuggets need a real combo 3, but those guys are rarely available and they can fetch a steep premium when they are. Team has been good in the past at not clogging their depth chart by dealing young players that no longer have a path to long term role with the team. But the big deal that does that and upgrades the top of the roster has eluded them. I’m not sure one is out there now. But they should be able to get some picks to compensate for the draft pick they traded for Grant.
Are we convinced Porter isn’t a perpetual injury risk? Has he turned that corner (honest question, don’t see a lot of him). And what if so preventing him from cracking the rotation now given his supposed talent level?