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The Denver Nuggets appear to be preparing to blow things up.
The Nuggets are trying to move franchise point guard Ty Lawson ahead of Thursday's trade deadline, according to ESPN's Chris Broussard.
Lawson has feuded with head coach Brian Shaw all season, and Shaw is said to want to bring in Indiana Pacers point guard George Hill - who he worked with as an assistant coach from 2011-2013 - as a replacement.
Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly has been open about his desire to restructure the team's roster, which, if one reads the tea leaves, likely means a tear-down. The Nuggets are 20-33 and nowhere near contention, with a roster short on young talent. Still, Lawson's name hasn't been appearing in trade rumors.
He and Shaw's latest dust-up came on Wednesday, when Lawson failed to show up for the team's first practice after the All-Star break, citing travel complications. Shaw wasn't in the mood for excuses.
"We had a week off or nine days between games, and you expect everybody to be here," Shaw said. "It disrupts the planning of everything, in terms of you count on somebody in practice. But he's not here so we had to go without him."
Broussard added that the Los Angeles Lakers, who have also been connected to point guard Goran Dragic, are interested in Lawson.
The issue, though, is that the Lakers are sorely lacking for valuable assets, and unless they're willing to part with rookie power forward Julius Randle, it's unclear what they can offer that the Nuggets couldn't find elsewhere.
The Pacers, likewise, could find it difficult to put together an appealing package, as fond as Shaw may be of Hill.
As a result, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reports that while Denver is actively listening, they're yet to receive offers that would make them seriously consider unloading the speedy point guard.
Lawson is 27 years old, he's one of the NBA's 12 or so best point guards, and he comes with two more seasons of team control at a very reasonable price tag. If the Nuggets are indeed serious about trading him, they can likely do better than whatever the Pacers and Lakers currently have to offer.
And unlike the Suns' predicament with Dragic, who's an impending free agent, there wouldn't seem to be any rush for the Nuggets. If they hang onto him, Lawson isn't going anywhere this summer. Shaw might not like it, but the Nuggets' best course may be to wait things out.
