The more things change, the more they stay the same. Somebody once said that, right? The Denver Nuggets, in a move to nobody's surprise, have reached a buyout with NBA veteran Joey Dorsey. Dorsey, 31 years-old, is an NBA journeyman and his acquisition from the Houston Rockets, as part of the Ty Lawson trade, was made simply for this reason: to be waived.
#Nuggets have reached a buyout agreement with Joey Dorsey, who was recently acquired in the Ty Lawson trade w/Houston.
— Chris Dempsey (@dempseypost) August 18, 2015
David Pick had the Dorsey information a while back, and had this earlier today:
Source: Galatasaray, Joey Dorsey sign deal worth in excess of $650 thousand.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) August 18, 2015
Dorsey is headed back overseas, and never suited up for the Nuggets. Denver now has 16 players under contract headed towards training camp. The team can carry up to 20 players during camp, but must trim the roster down to 15 by the start of the season. Kostas Papanikolaou has a non-guaranteed $4.7 million that could be waived at no fee, and Erick Green is guaranteed $100,000 of his $845,059 until Jan. 10th. Those two are likely candidates to not make the roster, but the team could entertain a few different scenarios before it's all said and done.
On the flip side, Nuggets veteran Jameer Nelson had a lengthy article on the guard position in today's NBA. Well worth the read, and here's a snippet from The Players' Tribune:
Guys like Steph Curry, Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook have proven that you can be a great scorer and distributor at the same time. In fact, if you're going to be a great guard nowadays, it's basically a necessity to have both of those qualities. Look at Russell Westbrook. Some people talk about him being too focused on scoring and taking too many shots, but I disagree. Look at all the triple doubles he had last year — his aggressive play is what allowed him to get 10-plus assists in those games. His ability to attract double-teams makes the game easier on his teammates.
As a high-scoring point guard at St. Joe's, I often heard similar criticisms. Coming out of college, people told me that because of my size, I had to become a "traditional point guard" in order to last in the NBA. Now, heading into my 12th season, I'm excited to see the way "scoring point guards" are taking over the league.
That being said, it's crowded for guards these days. My advice for talented young point guards entering the league is: Come prepared. You're now stepping into a league that's more of a grind than ever. Not many guards come into the league and take over early on. It took Steph a few years. Look where he is now. You can't get discouraged.
It's great that Nelson decided to stick around in Denver, and that he'll serve as a mentor to Emmanuel Mudiay and all the other young guys on the roster. And with the news that Nelson will be having the team with him in Philadelphia for some team bonding is even better.
With the right leaders, there's no telling how bright the future could be for the Nuggets.
