Apr 10, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets guard Ty Lawson (3) dribbles the ball around Dallas Mavericks forward Al-Farouq Aminu (7) during the second half at Pepsi Center. The Mavericks won 144-143 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
Ty Lawson to Utah
Utah had a very impressive second half of the season, finishing 17-8 and having the top defense in the NBA during that span. They are a developing young team, but they struggle to score. Dante Exum was great on defense this year, but he was horrid on offense, and neither him or Trey Burke shot above 40 percent from the field.
Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors anchored the offense this year, but they could ideally use some help. Denver looks to be rebuilding, so they could take on some of the many young assets Utah has.
Provided Utah brings back Trevor Booker, they are committed for a little over $50 million. That means that if they flip say their pick, Trey Burke, and Rodney Hood, they could realistically land Lawson.
The appeal to Lawson is obvious; he can shoot, score, and is an excellent passer. He’s still relatively young (27) and should realistically be on a winning team at this point in his career. He probably doesn’t want to go through a rebuild, and Denver could flip him for some young assets.
In this deal, Denver is basically trading for three unproven players. Beyond Lawson, they don’t have a young point guard, and they could try to develop Burke into their point guard of the future. He hasn’t been good, but he’s still young, and a change of scenery could be good for him. Hood is an interesting piece, a long, young wing who hits some threes and plays some good defense. He only played well for the last 30 or so games, and once Burks returns to Utah’s rotation, Hood would realistically be the 4th or 5th guard in the rotation (depending on how good you think Elijah Millsap is).
A lottery pick is always intriguing and, in rebuilding, the idea is to get as many shots to get a good player as possible (at least according to the Sam Hinkie model). Denver gets three shots here, so there’s obvious appeal.
How Utah would use Lawson would be interesting. He could either start or play in a role similar to how Isaiah Thomas is in Boston. He gives their offense another dimension, and takes the ball out of Hayward’s hands a little more, which is good because he is also a great catch and shoot player.
He could run pick and rolls with Rudy Gobert and Favors, and he would improve their spacing. He makes them a legitimate playoff team, even in the gruesome West.
Next: WC to OKC