Denver Nuggets News: Team Signs Erick Green, JaVale McGee On His Way Out?
By Andrew Dill
Sep 30, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets center JaVale McGee (34) during media day at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
The Denver Nuggets official site announced Friday morning that the team has come to an agreement with 2013 second-round pick Erick Green on a multi-year deal.
Green, 23, was selected with the 46th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz but had his rights traded to the Denver Nuggets. Green led the entire NCAA in scoring his senior year back in 2012, averaging 25.0 points, 3.8 assists, and 4.0 rebounds for the Virginia Tech Hokies. He would go on to average 13.5 points, 2.5 assists, and 2.6 rebounds over his four-year collegiate career.
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Green spent the 2013-14′ season overseas playing for an Italian League team called the Montepaschi Siena. He averaged 11.3 points, 1.2 assists, and 1.6 rebounds. Green also participated in the 2014 NBA Summer League for the Denver Nuggets, scoring 16.6 points, 2.6 assists, and 3.0 rebounds over five games.
JaVale McGee on the other hand has something to prove this season. The very athletic center played in just five games last season after suffering a stress fracture in his left leg. He averaged just 7.0 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game as he didn’t look like himself. With the addition of 16th overall selection Jusuf Nurkic, McGee could possibly be on his way out of the Mile High City if he doesn’t come prepared for the 2014-15′ season.
Jabari Davis of Basketball Insiders links McGee to the Los Angeles Lakers who are in desperate need of a center.
"McGee is owed about $23M over the next two seasons, so it would likely be a matter of whether the Lakers were interested in paying that for a player with a very limited skill set. You’re right about Byron working well with Chandler in the past, but I wouldn’t put McGee quite in that same category. Chandler has a higher basketball IQ and definitely seems to have a greater feel for the game than McGee. I’d love to see McGee find the right fit in terms of system and coaching philosophy at some point. He has an awful lot of athleticism for a player at that size, but some of it falls squarely upon his shoulders in terms of figuring out a way to put all the pieces together."
This season will be a big deciding factor for JaVale McGee if he will continue his career in Denver or elsewhere.