It did not take long for Troy Daniels to find a new home with reports that the Denver Nuggets are taking him in. Daniels was recently waived by the Los Angeles Lakers, a move that opened a roster spot. The Lakers worked out J.R. Smith and Dion Waiters but the latest reports reveal that it was the latter who will join the purple and gold for the rest of the season.
As for Daniels, the cut could work out for him. He hardly made progress with the Lakers since he was jockeying for playing time with another high caliber talent. The 28-year-old guard played in 41 games, averaging only 4.2 points and 1.1 rebounds. He was 39.2 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from rainbow country. He averaged only 11.1 minutes of action this 2019-20 NBA season.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Daniels is finalizing a deal with the Nuggets. Curiously, Daniels is still headed to the NBA playoffs. Denver is 6.5 games behind the Lakers but is likely to be one of the top seeds in the Western Conference. His addition is expected to give head coach Michael Malone more scoring options and floor spacing.
But Daniel's reliability still depends on whether he would get the right playing time with Denver. Several teams could have used the 6-foot-4 guard but playing time is essential. Daniels was able to develop his shooting through the years, something that never showed when he started his NBA career with the Houston Rockets back in 2014.
The Nuggets have blown hot and cold recently so Malone will likely give Daniels a shot. His performance for the rest of the regular season could determine the length of playing time he would get in the playoffs. Also, it could determine if he would be kept beyond this season - assuming the Nuggets pick him up just for the rest of the current NBA season.
The Nuggets lost to the Portland Trail Blazers in the second round last season. The story is different this year. Portland is unlikely to make the playoffs but Denver will be up against the stiffer competition. If the playoffs were to start today, they would face the Oklahoma City Thunder. Though that team is in rebuild mode, the Thunder is a team that they cannot take for granted. From there, things just get harder with teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Houston Rockets in waiting if they hurdle their first-round opponents as forecasted.