Maybe the Denver Nuggets will move Ty Lawson for more than a Godfather offer after all. According to ESPN, not only is Brian Shaw’s team trying to trade its point guard but also has a specific replacement in mind – George Hill of the Indiana Pacers.
Sources say Denver trying to move Ty Lawson and that Nuggets coach Brian Shaw wants his old Indiana pupil George Hill as replacement
— Chris Broussard (@Chris_Broussard) February 19, 2015
Broussard also notes that the Los Angeles Lakers are interested in Lawson.
This news comes less than 48 hours after Grantland’s Zach Lowe reported that the Nuggets would only trade Lawson (and Kenneth Faried) if recipients of a trade package they “couldn’t refuse.” That reference suggests something like a first-round pick and promising youngster might be enough for Denver to part with Lawson; not a solid if unspectacular performer like Hill.
But Shaw knows the IUPUI product well from his days as a Pacers assistant, and is surely placing extra emphasis on Hill’s status as an ideal locker room presence. The Nuggets, you may remember, aren’t exactly the physical embodiment of commitment and camaraderie. Still, Hill alone doesn’t seem a fair deal from from Denver’s perspective. Shaw isn’t the only one calling the shots in Colorado, and GM Tim Connelly hopefully possesses foresight his team’s coach doesn’t.
Either way, that Lawson was a no-show at Wednesday’s practice certainly doesn’t bode well for his future in Denver. This might be a marriage in which divorce would be the best route for both sides. For the sake of the Nuggets’ future, though, let’s just hope Shaw’s longing for Hill isn’t prime justification for the separation.
