Is Chandler Done In Denver?

Wilson Chandler was a pivotal part of the Denver Nuggets success after the Carmelo Anthony trade, but a disastrous shooting performance in the playoffs has left a sour taste with many Nuggets fans.

And so the debate goes on, are the Nuggets going to keep Chandler in their youth movement or do they let him walk?

Some believe that Chandler, who is a restricted free agent, has donned on his Nuggets jersey for the last time and is eager to return back East. But it would take a team to overpay for his services for Denver to let him, even than there is a strong possibility that the Nuggets would match especially if they lose Nene to free agency.

However, some Nuggets fans would happily see Chandler walk after his frustrating performance in the playoffs. In the 5-game series, Chandler made only 8 of 29 shots and didn’t score more than eight points a game. He finished the series averaging only 4.8 points a contest.

On the other hand, the fourth year swingman from DePaul quickly became a favorite of George Karl and it is not hard to see why. Chandler is one of the most versatile players in the League, during his three months in Denver he started at shooting guard, small forward and power forward. He also spent time defending LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Tony Parker, LaMarcus Aldridge and Kevin Durant. All the while he averaged more than 12 points and 5 rebounds a game.

In Karl’s dream world, Chandler would be the team’s sixth man and could come in and provide minutes in at least three positions in one game – all the while providing the Nuggets with scoring and defense off the bench. A bench of Chris Andersen, Chandler and Andre Miller would be valuable and a coaches dream.

However, there is a good chance that a team like New Jersey throws money at Chandler, who just turned 24 in May. The Nets weren’t shy last season and offered Travis Outlaw a $35 million/5 year contract and Chandler is younger and already better player than Outlaw and no doubt New Jersey would offer more (depending on how the Collective Bargaining Agreement works out) for Chandler’s services.

If the Nuggets do retain Chandler’s services, it would help the Nuggets keep their young core together. Currently the Nuggets have Ty Lawson, Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried, Timofey Mozgov and Jordan Hamilton on their team who are all 25 years old and younger.