A few weeks ago, Wilson Chandler decided he was going to roll the dice and spend this upcoming season playing in China rather than go back to the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets still own his rights (he’s a restricted free agent), but that’s not exactly going to do them a lot of good this season. Neither will going without JR Smith, who may also be taking his tattoos to China.
Under terms of the deal, Smith would make more than $3 million to play the 2011-12 season with Shanxi, but lose his chance at unrestricted free agency prior to the start of the NBA season. Smith, who turns 26 Friday, has averaged 12.5 points per game in his seven-year NBA career.
Under league rules, the China Basketball Association is no longer signing NBA players who want opt-out clauses to return to the NBA prior to the end of the China season. China’s season runs through March.
There’s no guarantee Denver would even bring Smith back, but they could use his scoring ability. At the very least, they could use him in some kind of potential sign-and-trade situation with a capped-out team looking for help. Going to China would throw a bit of a wrench in those gears.
It’s also not a given that Smith is gone. The report is that he’s “nearing” an agreement. With the sudden spate of positive lockout news, I wonder if Smith is still anxious to pull the trigger on a guaranteed year overseas. Granted, he COULD come back in April after the Chinese basketball season is done and kick off a bidding war for his services for the playoffs. But he also risks injury in China, which could have an impact on a future long-term deal that would give him a LOT more money than he’ll get this one year in China.
If he does go, that’s another move Denver can’t make. With Chandler gone and Kenyon Martin seemingly on the way out, the Nuggets are going to find themselves in a tough spot with no chips left to make their team better.
