Offseason Grades

[NuggetsWY]

Hoops Habit shared their offseason grades for the Nuggets https://hoopshabit.com/2017/09/13/denver-nuggets-complete-2017-offseason-grades/

Here's my version, for what it's worth.

C Draft Night Trade - Horse manure - the Nuggets correctly said they needed "defense" - the Nuggets were already a deep team and many said they needed to "consolidate" --- so what did they do? they trade a draft pick for a player plus a draft pick - neither player is a defensive stopper unlike Donovan Mitchell & OG Anunoby, both of whom were available with the traded pick - should be an "F"

C Drafting Tyler Lydon - see above + the Nuggets already had Faried, Chandler, Arthur, Lyles, Hernangomez, Millsap at PF - ridiculous selection - should be a "D-" and that is not based on Lydon's ability - it is based on team need

B- Drafting Vlatko Cancar - how can a draft-n-stash be graded this early? Should be "incomplete"

B+ Drafting Monte Morris - at pick #51, the Nuggets drafted a quality PG with good potential to be at a minimum as a great backup PG - what more could anyone ask? Should be an "A"

A+ Signing Paul Millsap - perfect fit for the Nuggets, great contract - "A+" for sure

B- Sign-n-trade Gallinaro - what a joke, the Nuggets gained very little of value and helped a conference rival - should have been an "F"

B- Signing Childress - A little old, one bad foul on youtube, not a great scorer and at SF with Jokic in the middle, the Nuggets need 3pt shooters - but this seems to be a publicity stunt as the first team to sign a "Big3" player - should be a "D+" because he's likely not going to play much and if they keep him on the roster, there will be no seven foot Nuggets and only one true center

B+ Overall - should be "C-" at best - Nuggets needed defense, they added Millsap and that's it - Every team needs 3pt shooting, the Nuggets diminished their 3pt shooting - the Nuggets needed to consolidate and they added 3 young players plus swapped one veteran for another

[MidMountain]

I think the A+ of Milsap offsets most of the draft foibles, so I agree with the B+ overall.
I have a hard time imagining any player we drafted (at 13 or 24) cracking the rotation. Donovan Mitchell would be stuck behind several players at guard. PF is stacked, and I have a hard time imagining a player (like OG) getting PT at SF ahead of Chandler and Hernangomez. I'm OK with them taking a risk on a couple of raw prospects. If either pan out, it's a win and no player would have been likely to see court time anyway.
A consolidation trade would have been nice, but those are really hard to pull off and would likely needed to have included Harris or Murray.

[skywalker33]

C- Draft Night Trade - Lyles is a question make for us, but the Nuggets liked him in the 2015 draft. He was a lottery pick in that draft and he'll have time to regain and improve on his rookie year performance while learning from Milsap. Still, Mitchell would have been a great selection IMO, his value would have been better than a question mark,

D Tyler Lydon - The Nuggets freaked out when OG was gone and made a very hasty move. Lydon showed bust-like material in the SL, his shooting (what he has been known for) just wasn't there. Said he'll play SF but I doubt he has the foot spped. Nuggets has the ammo to move up but mis-read the Raptors, we'll have to see where it goes from here.

C- Vlatko Cancar - Heard he was pick as a "favor" to his agent who happens to represent the Joke too. If it give us favorable negotiations with Jokic, then I'd upgrade this quite a bit, well worth it. If he turns into a prospect, even better but I really don't know what to expect here

C+ Monte Morris - He could turn into a solid backup, rarely turns the ball over and has a good floor-general approach. He'll get most of his PT in the G-League, someone to watch in his development, Does make Nelson replaceable IMO

A+ Paul Millsap - Nice vet to put on this team, should set the example to the young guys and be a leader and hopefully a mentor.

B- Sign-n-trade Gallinaro - We should have gotten a bit more but honestly he was on his way out. He was a team player while on the Nuggets, but wish he'd have gone to the Eastern Conference

C - Signing Childress - Moot point as he won't make the team IMO. Seems like a move to get Plumlee interested in that last roster spot.

B - Overall - I agree with WY, a positive offseason, but definitely showed chinks in the FO's armor

[Mac1958]

B overall. Lydon makes no sense. The team went out of its way to create a weird logjam at PF.

The Milsap signing was perfect, both on the court and within the salary cap.

[The Rebel]

D+

I will give them an A for signing Millsap

F for trading the pick for cash that was used to trade up for Collins, and then trading down with our pick for a backup PF and drafting a backup combo forward.

C for the 2nd round of the draft

A for getting Craig to sign a 2 way contract, I think he has potential to be a very good 3 and D Sf long term.

F for agreeing to sign and trade Gallo for a future 2nd to a team that is going to compete with us for a playoff spot.

F for not figuring out backup Center

D- Childress, why sign a guy who was basically a mess in the NBA last time he was in the NBA, he chased out of the Euro leagues, and was not in much demand with the NBL? Sure he can come in and play some decent defense and teach guys a few tricks, but I do not know that this is a guy you want to bring into camp.

This team is still positioned right long term, but this offseason has been a mess outside of signing Millsap and Craig, nothing about it screams that they should have all gotten promotions and raises.

[THE J0KER]

2017 moves recap so far

GOOD MOVES:
- Signing Millsap

CREDIT FOR:
- Millsap contract is in a perfect 2+1 format for 31y old veteran
- We can't compete for Gallinari anyway, so we at least get something (2nd round pick)
- We keep Mason Plumlee for another season for really cheap price

BAD MOVES:
- Wasted Nurkic and 1st round pick in a trade with Portland
- Wasted #13 pick on draft night for almost nothing from Utah

WASTED OPPORTUNITY:
- We should accept Chicago offer for Butler, despite they insist on future NBA star Murray. All-star Butler and his good contract are worthy Murray+#13+Mudiay. If we made that deal, Jokic/Millsap/Butler will be TOP3 (if not the best) league frontcourt line, and we can dream even about Conference final next two season with such roster.
- Not (even start to) solving a big problem with so unbalanced roster where we lack for PG and SF players and have way too much PF's.

OVERALL GRADE:
B

For such FO work, I give B instead of more appropriate grade C only because we still have some good assets (Faried, 2018 pick, Mudiay...) and enough times before February trade deadline to fix PG/SF roster weakness, and also, I need more proofs that Donovan Mitchell are real deal, couple of perfect summer league games is still not enough.

[NuggetsWY]

2017 moves recap so far

GOOD MOVES:
- Signing Millsap

CREDIT FOR:
- Millsap contract is in a perfect 2+1 format for 31y old veteran
- We can't compete for Gallinari anyway, so we at least get something (2nd round pick)
- We keep Mason Plumlee for another season for really cheap price

BAD MOVES:
- Wasted Nurkic and 1st round pick in a trade with Portland
- Wasted #13 pick on draft night for almost nothing from Utah

WASTED OPPORTUNITY:
- We should accept Chicago offer for Butler, despite they insist on future NBA star Murray. All-star Butler and his good contract are worthy Murray+#13+Mudiay. If we made that deal, Jokic/Millsap/Butler will be TOP3 (if not the best) league frontcourt line, and we can dream even about Conference final next two season with such roster.
- Not (even start to) solving a big problem with so unbalanced roster where we lack for PG and SF players and have way too much PF's.

OVERALL GRADE:
B

For such FO work, I give B instead of more appropriate grade C only because we still have some good assets (Faried, 2018 pick, Mudiay...) and enough times before February trade deadline to fix PG/SF roster weakness, and also, I need more proofs that Donovan Mitchell are real deal, couple of perfect summer league games is still not enough.

I'll agree with some of your observations and disagree with some; but that's no surprise. What your last paragraph points out would be, IMO, that if we don't make at least one decent trade (not including Jokic, Harris, Murray, Hernangomez) before the trade deadline, the front office ought to be sent to Gilligan's Island.

[skywalker33]

D+

I will give them an A for signing Millsap

F for trading the pick for cash that was used to trade up for Collins, and then trading down with our pick for a backup PF and drafting a backup combo forward.

C for the 2nd round of the draft

A for getting Craig to sign a 2 way contract, I think he has potential to be a very good 3 and D Sf long term.

F for agreeing to sign and trade Gallo for a future 2nd to a team that is going to compete with us for a playoff spot.

F for not figuring out backup Center

D- Childress, why sign a guy who was basically a mess in the NBA last time he was in the NBA, he chased out of the Euro leagues, and was not in much demand with the NBL? Sure he can come in and play some decent defense and teach guys a few tricks, but I do not know that this is a guy you want to bring into camp.

This team is still positioned right long term, but this offseason has been a mess outside of signing Millsap and Craig, nothing about it screams that they should have all gotten promotions and raises.

Pretty harsh !

[NuggetsWY]

D+

I will give them an A for signing Millsap

F for trading the pick for cash that was used to trade up for Collins, and then trading down with our pick for a backup PF and drafting a backup combo forward.

C for the 2nd round of the draft

A for getting Craig to sign a 2 way contract, I think he has potential to be a very good 3 and D Sf long term.

F for agreeing to sign and trade Gallo for a future 2nd to a team that is going to compete with us for a playoff spot.

F for not figuring out backup Center

D- Childress, why sign a guy who was basically a mess in the NBA last time he was in the NBA, he chased out of the Euro leagues, and was not in much demand with the NBL? Sure he can come in and play some decent defense and teach guys a few tricks, but I do not know that this is a guy you want to bring into camp.

This team is still positioned right long term, but this offseason has been a mess outside of signing Millsap and Craig, nothing about it screams that they should have all gotten promotions and raises.

Pretty harsh !

Sure, pretty harsh, but somewhat understandable. I was trying to look at the team overall. If I was more focused on what the front office did and/or did not do, I just might have come up with something more like this myself. As I've said before, the team is very poorly constructed, especially balance-wise. There seems to be no direction. It's sort of like a 3 year old coloring with everything out of perspective.

[The Rebel]

D+

I will give them an A for signing Millsap

F for trading the pick for cash that was used to trade up for Collins, and then trading down with our pick for a backup PF and drafting a backup combo forward.

C for the 2nd round of the draft

A for getting Craig to sign a 2 way contract, I think he has potential to be a very good 3 and D Sf long term.

F for agreeing to sign and trade Gallo for a future 2nd to a team that is going to compete with us for a playoff spot.

F for not figuring out backup Center

D- Childress, why sign a guy who was basically a mess in the NBA last time he was in the NBA, he chased out of the Euro leagues, and was not in much demand with the NBL? Sure he can come in and play some decent defense and teach guys a few tricks, but I do not know that this is a guy you want to bring into camp.

This team is still positioned right long term, but this offseason has been a mess outside of signing Millsap and Craig, nothing about it screams that they should have all gotten promotions and raises.

Pretty harsh !

I thought I was being nice giving them a D+ for how I really feel. While the Nukic deal was not part of this offseason, it screwed up this offseason, but it was not the main part of the deal that did it. The issue was the typical Kroenke influence of selling a late 1st for cash as was included in the Nurkic deal. Going into this offseason we all know that we needed a SF with 3 and D potential, and a shotblocking big preferably Center who can play some PF.

Zach Collins would have been the perfect fit for what we needed and our pick was the 20th pick which was used with the Trailblazers 15th that was traded for the 10th pick that they used to get Collins. They could have brought Plumlee back at the QO giving a year to Collins to get him acclimated and then had a great backup C for Jokic for 2-3 years before he would get paid. Now our division rivals have 2 of our Centers and we have 1. Instead we walk away with a combo forward that looked terrible in summer league and a backup PF that is not exactly known for defense.

The Gallo deal really pissed me off as well, the only way the Clippers could have gotten Gallo was to move an additional $7 million in contracts in addition to what they moved for the sign and trade, that would have cost them more assets or they would have not been able to get Gallo at all. Instead they walk away paying a 1st and bad contract for a guy who they desperately needed and we get a 2nd for making another conference rival stronger. If we would have gotten Dekker or a decent 1st out of the deal than I could at least justify it somewhat but a 2nd that is 3 years down the road is terrible value for the crap they did.

This roster needed a consolidation move to get better fits and upgrade at SF to someone that is happy to be here and that is a true 3rd star type, instead we get a bunch of PFs and no legit moves leaving the roster full of clutter blocking talented young players who may never get a chance to show what they have.

The only stuff I am happy about is that they did not give up the young guys, they signed Millsap, and signed Craig (for some reason I have a good feeling about him). The rest was a terrible offseason and a front office that needs to figure out how to actually build a team around the talent they are so good at drafting.

[skywalker33]

D+

I will give them an A for signing Millsap

F for trading the pick for cash that was used to trade up for Collins, and then trading down with our pick for a backup PF and drafting a backup combo forward.

C for the 2nd round of the draft

A for getting Craig to sign a 2 way contract, I think he has potential to be a very good 3 and D Sf long term.

F for agreeing to sign and trade Gallo for a future 2nd to a team that is going to compete with us for a playoff spot.

F for not figuring out backup Center

D- Childress, why sign a guy who was basically a mess in the NBA last time he was in the NBA, he chased out of the Euro leagues, and was not in much demand with the NBL? Sure he can come in and play some decent defense and teach guys a few tricks, but I do not know that this is a guy you want to bring into camp.

This team is still positioned right long term, but this offseason has been a mess outside of signing Millsap and Craig, nothing about it screams that they should have all gotten promotions and raises.

Pretty harsh !

I thought I was being nice giving them a D+ for how I really feel. While the Nukic deal was not part of this offseason, it screwed up this offseason, but it was not the main part of the deal that did it. The issue was the typical Kroenke influence of selling a late 1st for cash as was included in the Nurkic deal. Going into this offseason we all know that we needed a SF with 3 and D potential, and a shotblocking big preferably Center who can play some PF.

Zach Collins would have been the perfect fit for what we needed and our pick was the 20th pick which was used with the Trailblazers 15th that was traded for the 10th pick that they used to get Collins. They could have brought Plumlee back at the QO giving a year to Collins to get him acclimated and then had a great backup C for Jokic for 2-3 years before he would get paid. Now our division rivals have 2 of our Centers and we have 1. Instead we walk away with a combo forward that looked terrible in summer league and a backup PF that is not exactly known for defense.

The Gallo deal really pissed me off as well, the only way the Clippers could have gotten Gallo was to move an additional $7 million in contracts in addition to what they moved for the sign and trade, that would have cost them more assets or they would have not been able to get Gallo at all. Instead they walk away paying a 1st and bad contract for a guy who they desperately needed and we get a 2nd for making another conference rival stronger. If we would have gotten Dekker or a decent 1st out of the deal than I could at least justify it somewhat but a 2nd that is 3 years down the road is terrible value for the crap they did.

This roster needed a consolidation move to get better fits and upgrade at SF to someone that is happy to be here and that is a true 3rd star type, instead we get a bunch of PFs and no legit moves leaving the roster full of clutter blocking talented young players who may never get a chance to show what they have.

The only stuff I am happy about is that they did not give up the young guys, they signed Millsap, and signed Craig (for some reason I have a good feeling about him). The rest was a terrible offseason and a front office that needs to figure out how to actually build a team around the talent they are so good at drafting.

Hard for me to argue with most of those sentiments, but most of the negatives were moves that affect the bench. I still think Plumlee resigns so just a salary cap power play going on there. We both confirmed we liked Collins and moving that 20th pick to move a locker room cancer (not sure where you came up with cash ?) was one of the STUPIDEST moves I've seen around here in such a good draft. Hot only would he fill the current backup C position and possibly the future at PF, it would've kept hi away from a divisional rival. That said, Collins was one of the worst rookies (right there with Lydon) in SL.

Childress is TC fodder so he really shouldn't affect the grade, the 2nds should also be negligible even though I really like Morris. Craig could be a good future, thought he was a great move along with Morris for those 2-way contracts.

The Gallo move was precarious to say the least, he was on his way out anyway. We did help him expedite a good contract, he was a strong team player for us while he was here, but going to a direct competitor made this SOOO questionable, I agree.

The only move that made this offseason a success IMO was their biggest and best. It made Gallo expendable, replaces his scoring while adds some much needed D next to Jokic. As you stated before, this move was for a star which is what we should be concentrating on.

I share your frustration, but most of the frustration moves were minor in my view.

[NuggetsWY]

I share your frustration, but most of the frustration moves were minor in my view.

Perhaps the moves were minor - the stupidity of building the current roster is not minor IMO.

Trading down in the draft to add 2 PFs to a roster that already had 4 true PFs plus 2 additional players that played PF last year makes no sense to anyone that I've read/heard. I've yet to see anyone that defends a team having 6 true PFs and 2 additional players that play (assuming the re-sign Plumlee).

Trading a potential starting center for a backup center plus a first round pick was ridiculous.

Saying "we need defense, length, athleticism" and then drafting/trading for Lyles/Lydon makes no sense at all. Perhaps they signed Childress to make up for not doing what they said? Unfortunately it looks more like a publicity ploy - adding the first Big3 player to sign with the NBA.

6 guards that can apparently play to some degree.
6 PFs
1 SF -
1 Center -
1 former NBA player, out for a few years, never had a decent shot -

I'll give the Nuggets some positive but this is easily the worst off-season this ownership has ever had --- I'll even say they did worse than when they signed Shaw (because at least they did something with the draft that year). Perhaps I was too generous. I must have been in a very good mood that day.

[skywalker33]

Perhaps the moves were minor - the stupidity of building the current roster is not minor IMO.

Trading down in the draft to add 2 PFs to a roster that already had 4 true PFs plus 2 additional players that played PF last year makes no sense to anyone that I've read/heard. I've yet to see anyone that defends a team having 6 true PFs and 2 additional players that play (assuming the re-sign Plumlee).

Well, to be fair, they're looking at Lydon as a SF because of his shooting ability and Milsap was not on the roster until after the draft and I'm pretty sure they were looking for Juancho to play backup SF with the expected exit of Gallo. If Milsap signed elsewhere I'd of bet we'd of resigned Gallo which changes the look of those moves IMO.

Trading a potential starting center for a backup center plus a first round pick was ridiculous.

I agree adding that 1st made it ridiculous, but Nurkic HAD TO GO, he was turning into a locker room cancer regardless of his talent. POR may not have been the best place for us to trade him too, but the FO has been player-oriented that way, even to the detriment of the organization

Saying "we need defense, length, athleticism" and then drafting/trading for Lyles/Lydon makes no sense at all. Perhaps they signed Childress to make up for not doing what they said? Unfortunately it looks more like a publicity ploy - adding the first Big3 player to sign with the NBA.

Yeah, never said there weren't some frustrating moves, but Milsap DOES bring the D and replacing Gallo with Chandler can help too, so put some perspective there. Childress (who I think is just a TC/PR move) won't be there in the regular season regardless of his D.

6 guards that can apparently play to some degree.
6 PFs
1 SF -
1 Center -
1 former NBA player, out for a few years, never had a decent shot -

Well, YOUR perspective of the roster and the Nuggets FO perspective of the roster's positional assignments are a bit different. I too look at the roster and see a bit more versatility there. Does there need to be some adjustments, yeah I'll agree it's not perfectly balanced. I've voiced my concerns as well.

And here goes my soapbox, can't believe I'm the one defending the FO when I was ripping them after the draft....I'm so ashamed ( Apologies to The Rebel, exactly what I called him out for earlier in the year )

[NuggetsWY]

Perhaps the moves were minor - the stupidity of building the current roster is not minor IMO.

Trading down in the draft to add 2 PFs to a roster that already had 4 true PFs plus 2 additional players that played PF last year makes no sense to anyone that I've read/heard. I've yet to see anyone that defends a team having 6 true PFs and 2 additional players that play (assuming the re-sign Plumlee).

Well, to be fair, they're looking at Lydon as a SF because of his shooting ability and Milsap was not on the roster until after the draft and I'm pretty sure they were looking for Juancho to play backup SF with the expected exit of Gallo. If Milsap signed elsewhere I'd of bet we'd of resigned Gallo which changes the look of those moves IMO.

Are you trying to prove my point? They can call Jameer Nelson a small forward but that doesn't make him one. Hernangomez & Lydon can probably fill the roll - on offense! But on defense?

Trading a potential starting center for a backup center plus a first round pick was ridiculous.

I agree adding that 1st made it ridiculous, but Nurkic HAD TO GO, he was turning into a locker room cancer regardless of his talent. POR may not have been the best place for us to trade him too, but the FO has been player-oriented that way, even to the detriment of the organization

Saying "we need defense, length, athleticism" and then drafting/trading for Lyles/Lydon makes no sense at all. Perhaps they signed Childress to make up for not doing what they said? Unfortunately it looks more like a publicity ploy - adding the first Big3 player to sign with the NBA.

Yeah, never said there weren't some frustrating moves, but Milsap DOES bring the D and replacing Gallo with Chandler can help too, so put some perspective there. Childress (who I think is just a TC/PR move) won't be there in the regular season regardless of his D.

As long as Millsap can play defense against the centers and the power forwards and against the bench small forwards - then we'll be fine. (Not in green because it's far less sarcastic than it seems.)

6 guards that can apparently play to some degree.
6 PFs
1 SF -
1 Center -
1 former NBA player, out for a few years, never had a decent shot -

Well, YOUR perspective of the roster and the Nuggets FO perspective of the roster's positional assignments are a bit different. I too look at the roster and see a bit more versatility there. Does there need to be some adjustments, yeah I'll agree it's not perfectly balanced. I've voiced my concerns as well.

And here goes my soapbox, can't believe I'm the one defending the FO when I was ripping them after the draft....I'm so ashamed ( Apologies to The Rebel, exactly what I called him out for earlier in the year )

[skywalker33]

Well, Milsap won't be the ONLY one on the court, you think Juancho, and Jokic can play ZERO defense ??? That's what you make it sound like ...

And from that great theatrical masterpiece "How can they become defensive stalwarts if we don't allow them to practice their defense ?"

[NuggetsWY]

Well, Milsap won't be the ONLY one on the court, you think Juancho, and Jokic can play ZERO defense ??? That's what you make it sound like ...

And from that great theatrical masterpiece "How can they become defensive stalwarts if we don't allow them to practice their defense ?"

Have you being listening to my posts? Even Chandler & Harris looked bad on defense according to the statistics. Arguable Millsap is now our best defender. While the real problem is the lack of a reasonable team concept of defense. Our defense is "stay at home on 3 pt shooters, even poor ones" and "guards should always trail over picks" leaving our bigs facing two players with a "don't help when there's a pick-n-roll". Why other teams don't run a pick-n-roll on every play against us is beyond my understanding. Remember Stockton/Malone? Pick-n-roll almost every play those two were on the court together. Nobody could effectively stop them without adding another defender, leaving guys open. Sure, that's what Denver is trying to prevent, the open shooters. However, 3 pt shooting is not typically as effective as layups and lobs.

Harris & Chandler have proven themselves effective, pre-Malone. Murray and even Hernangomez showed some hustle but they didn't really know what to do (a coaching issue). Even Beasley didn't look too bad, hustle-wise on defense. Faried is better than most give him credit for - just ask Rebel (and I believe too). Even Jokic is better than people give him credit for - in one-on-one plays and most other plays in the paint. There's no excuse for our team defense to be so pathetic. But then, what do I know? Malone gets paid a whole lot more than me and he's called a "defensive-minded coach".

[MidMountain]

The Plumlee contract, 3/$41, seems like an overpay.

[NuggetsWY]

The Plumlee contract, 3/$41, seems like an overpay.

Yeah, more than it seemed anyone else would have paid. However, he is the closest thing to Jokic in the NBA today which leaves the second string able to play a somewhat similar style to the starting lineup. Plus he can play some power forward minutes.

His contract isn't crippling in terms of cap, but it doesn't help. If they forced him to accept the qualifying offer, he would have been unrestricted next year and we don't have a young backup center (although we probably could have drafted one this year if we'd had two firsts plus a veteran to trade.

My biggest question is: How is the contract structured? Initial reports don't seem to say. If the 3rd year is a team option like Millsap's, this is a rather team-friendly option.

[The Rebel]

Spoiler:

Pretty harsh !

I thought I was being nice giving them a D+ for how I really feel. While the Nukic deal was not part of this offseason, it screwed up this offseason, but it was not the main part of the deal that did it. The issue was the typical Kroenke influence of selling a late 1st for cash as was included in the Nurkic deal. Going into this offseason we all know that we needed a SF with 3 and D potential, and a shotblocking big preferably Center who can play some PF.

Zach Collins would have been the perfect fit for what we needed and our pick was the 20th pick which was used with the Trailblazers 15th that was traded for the 10th pick that they used to get Collins. They could have brought Plumlee back at the QO giving a year to Collins to get him acclimated and then had a great backup C for Jokic for 2-3 years before he would get paid. Now our division rivals have 2 of our Centers and we have 1. Instead we walk away with a combo forward that looked terrible in summer league and a backup PF that is not exactly known for defense.

The Gallo deal really pissed me off as well, the only way the Clippers could have gotten Gallo was to move an additional $7 million in contracts in addition to what they moved for the sign and trade, that would have cost them more assets or they would have not been able to get Gallo at all. Instead they walk away paying a 1st and bad contract for a guy who they desperately needed and we get a 2nd for making another conference rival stronger. If we would have gotten Dekker or a decent 1st out of the deal than I could at least justify it somewhat but a 2nd that is 3 years down the road is terrible value for the crap they did.

This roster needed a consolidation move to get better fits and upgrade at SF to someone that is happy to be here and that is a true 3rd star type, instead we get a bunch of PFs and no legit moves leaving the roster full of clutter blocking talented young players who may never get a chance to show what they have.

The only stuff I am happy about is that they did not give up the young guys, they signed Millsap, and signed Craig (for some reason I have a good feeling about him). The rest was a terrible offseason and a front office that needs to figure out how to actually build a team around the talent they are so good at drafting.

Hard for me to argue with most of those sentiments, but most of the negatives were moves that affect the bench. I still think Plumlee resigns so just a salary cap power play going on there. We both confirmed we liked Collins and moving that 20th pick to move a locker room cancer (not sure where you came up with cash ?) was one of the STUPIDEST moves I've seen around here in such a good draft. Hot only would he fill the current backup C position and possibly the future at PF, it would've kept hi away from a divisional rival. That said, Collins was one of the worst rookies (right there with Lydon) in SL.

Childress is TC fodder so he really shouldn't affect the grade, the 2nds should also be negligible even though I really like Morris. Craig could be a good future, thought he was a great move along with Morris for those 2-way contracts.

The Gallo move was precarious to say the least, he was on his way out anyway. We did help him expedite a good contract, he was a strong team player for us while he was here, but going to a direct competitor made this SOOO questionable, I agree.

The only move that made this offseason a success IMO was their biggest and best. It made Gallo expendable, replaces his scoring while adds some much needed D next to Jokic. As you stated before, this move was for a star which is what we should be concentrating on.

I share your frustration, but most of the frustration moves were minor in my view.

The Nuggets got $2.85 million in cash in the deal.

[The Rebel]

The Plumlee contract, 3/$41, seems like an overpay.

Yeah, more than it seemed anyone else would have paid. However, he is the closest thing to Jokic in the NBA today which leaves the second string able to play a somewhat similar style to the starting lineup. Plus he can play some power forward minutes.

His contract isn't crippling in terms of cap, but it doesn't help. If they forced him to accept the qualifying offer, he would have been unrestricted next year and we don't have a young backup center (although we probably could have drafted one this year if we'd had two firsts plus a veteran to trade.

My biggest question is: How is the contract structured? Initial reports don't seem to say. If the 3rd year is a team option like Millsap's, this is a rather team-friendly option.

I wouldn't say his contract isn't crippling, it cut into next year's cap space dramatically for a guy who is never going to be more than our 3rd big, and going into this year is arguably our 4th best big (and it might be 5th if Arthur was healthy). He is not good enough to be making a starting Center salary and paying him like one is arguably the dumbest move of the offseason.

I now change my grade for the Nuggets front office to a D-.