Time is running out for the Denver Nuggets’ two-way contract player Torrey Craig.
Two-way contracts are a strange situation that is brand new to the NBA this season, which has led to some uncertainty. Two-way contract players are only supposed to be allowed 45 days at the NBA level, but multiple executives from around the league have told Mile High Sports that there is not any one perfect definition of what a day at the NBA-level consists of. This has led to some confusion as to how many days Craig has left with the Nuggets.
“He is still in Denver,” Malone said when he was asked how many days Craig has left at the NBA level. “That is a tough one because obviously, I believe in Torrey; I play him, but with this whole two-way thing, we have to keep those days in mind.”
Well, unfortunately — regardless of who you ask about how many days Craig has left — the general consensus is that his time at the NBA is nearly up. The only way Craig can stick with the Nuggets for the rest of the season is if Denver opens up a roster spot and gives Craig a full NBA contract — which seems to be the outcome that Nuggets’ head coach Michael Malone is hoping for.
“Who knows with the trade deadline coming up,” Malone said at shootaround prior to the Nuggets taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder. “Can you create a roster spot somehow? Can we sign Torrey Craig for the rest of the year? For me — as a coach — that would be ideal.”
Malone — while giving Craig a solid endorsement — also took the opportunity to express his confusion and displeasure over why the league puts such a random number of days as the limit to what Craig. If Malone had his way, the two-way contract players would be used more in the way that the National Football League uses its practice squad players and there wouldn’t be a limit to how many days a player is allowed to play with the professional team that is paying him.
“If we want to pay the guy than I do not know why we have to worry about 45 days,” Malone said. “That is such an arbitrary number. He is here and he is a guy that we believe in and want to play.”
For now, the rule will remind unchanged and the Nuggets will need to figure out how to navigate keeping Craig in Denver for as long as possible. Malone is doing his best to just go game by game and get Craig as much playing time as possible.
“I am just taking it one game at a time. I can’t worry about saving his days until the end of March. We need to get through today,” Malone said. “It is a fine line and it presents a pretty interesting problem to have because he is a valuable player.”
One thing is for sure; Craig will end up fulfilling the entire 45-day allotted time with the Nuggets and — for a 27-year-old rookie who spent four years at a small school in South Carolina as well as four more years across the pond in Australia and New Zealand — that is pretty spectacular.
Malone can see the talent Craig has, the Nuggets’ front office can see the talent Craig has, and even the Nuggets’ fans are starting to catch on. Regardless of whether Craig receives a full NBA contact from the Nuggets or not, he has proven he is able to play and produce as an NBA player and Malone has given him yet another vote of confidence.
“For me, if he is here, I am playing him,” Malone said. “Torrey is in the building and he will be available to play.”
