JULY 20TH, 4:26pm: The Nuggets have waived Prigioni, ESPN.com’s Marc Stein tweets. Denver confirmed the move in its press release on the Lawson trade.
JULY 19TH, 9:13pm: The Nuggets intend to waive newly acquired point guard Pablo Prigioni, TNT’s David Aldridge reports (Twitter link). Prigioni is being sent to Denver as part of the Ty Lawson deal. The Nuggets appear to be committing to turning the team over to 2015 first-rounder Emmanuel Mudiay with today’s moves.
Prigioni’s salary of $1,734,572 is set to become fully guaranteed if he remains on the roster past Monday, as is shown by our schedule of contract guarantee dates. Denver would only be on the hook for $440K, the amount of Prigioni’s partial guarantee, by waiving him.
What’s next for the 38-year-old from Argentina is unclear. He’ll likely draw offers from overseas, and the Cavaliers, who were reportedly trying to acquire Prigioni at last season’s trade deadline, could potentially look to him as an alternative to Matthew Dellavedova, who is still unsigned, though that is merely my speculation.
In three NBA seasons Prigioni has averaged 3.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 3.0 assists to go with a slash line of .437/.398/.872.
The Nuggets had too many point guards before the deal, so it makes sense that they’d move on from Prigioni. Plus, there’s no call for him there as a veteran mentor for Mudiay with Nelson around.
He has been a very good player in the NBA. Only thing I have a problem with is that he is sometimes reluctant to shoot. Too bad he isnt younger. Still, he’ll help whatever team he ends up on
Unfortunately, I think letting him go is a mistake. He brings hard tough-nosed defense to any team he plays for, is cheap, and a veteran presence. He can bring a spark to the team at many different times throughout the season, especially if Mudiay or Nelson struggle. At the very worst, try and package him with Faried and get something in return. Especially if we’re now in rebuild mode now.