Will Gallinari Land With Clippers?
The Denver Nuggets will finally put to bed the Carmelo Anthony saga on Tuesday in a deal that will reportedly send the All-Star small forward to the New York Knicks.
One of the pieces coming to the Nuggets is expected to be third-year small forward Danilo Gallinari. The question remains . . . will Denver keep him past Thursday’s trade deadline?
Sources close to the situation say that Gallinari’s "people" would like the Nuggets to send him to the Los Angeles Clippers or, barring that, back east to the New Jersey Nets or another situation altogether.
The Clippers have been looking all year for a small forward to add to the core of rookie star Blake Griffin and the emerging Eric Gordon. The Nets are still trying to add as many young pieces as possible to the rebuilding process.
The bigger question is the Nuggets and their interest in Danilo long term.
Expect a number of teams to hit Denver with inquiries but will they move him and at what asking price?
Although sources say the Clippers’ interest is real, if the Nuggets are asking for more than multiple second-rounders or a well-protected first-round pick, LA would have serious reservations.{AUTHOR_BOX}
Danilo will head into the final year on his contract after this season, after which he’ll be a restricted free agent. There’s only so much the Clippers would be willing to give, considering that next year’s season isn’t even a guarantee with the prospective lockout on the horizon.
Gallinari is still just 22 years old. The 6’10" Italian has averaged 15.9 points a game this season while shooting 41.5% from the field and 34.7% from the arc.
Last season Gallinari hit 186 three-pointers at a 38.1% clip. This year, he’s made more of a concerted effort to get to the line (19th in the league in attempts) where he shoots just under 90%.
Some teams are hesitant to take on players who thrive in offensive-leaning systems that can lead to inflated statistics (think coaches Mike D’Antoni and Don Nelson).
LA has also been shopping seldom used veteran Rasual Butler and his $2.4 million expiring contract. The Clippers technically have enough cap space to absorb Danilo’s contract outright, saving the Nuggets whatever portion is unpaid from Gallinari’s $3.3 million.
It’s unclear how interested the Nets would be in Gallinari but expect Denver to field many, many calls from around the league on Tuesday.
The Nuggets will also receive Chandler from the Knicks but sources say the Clippers have no interest.
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