Especially in the second half, the Denver Nuggets had a bit of a turnaround last season. They improved their win total by seven and narrowly missed the playoffs. A lot of that had to do with the emergence of Nikola Jokic.
That being said, do not discount the impact of forward Danilo Gallinari, who once again led the team in scoring, averaging 18.2 points per game.
Gallinari can opt out of his contract this offseason, something he is expected to do. That doesn’t however, mean that he is looking to leave the Mile High City.
“The relationship between me, the city and the organization is great,” Gallinari told BlitzTV (via Sportando). “This is the reason why I would love to reach an agreement to remain in Denver. I love it here; and I would love to remain with the Nuggets.”
Now, you can easily infer from that comment that Gallinari is going to opt out. Otherwise, why would the two sides need to reach an agreement? Then, the question would become at what price?
The option would see Gallinari make $16.1 million next season. Sure, the Nuggets have enough money to spend to give him a raise; but how much higher would they want to go for the oft-injured stretch big?
Some team will likely pay Gallinari. It remains to be seen if that team will be the Nuggets.
