Danilo Gallinari opted out from the final year of his contract with the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday, earning the right to explore unrestricted free agency. Though he’ll be one of the 10 to 12 biggest names available—and while he’s actually higher up on that totem pole when you consider players who aren’t actually flight risks—he remains interested in sticking with the Denver Nuggets long term.
From The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
Denver Nuggets forward Danilo Gallinari intends to pass on the $16.1 million player option on his 2017-18 contract and become an unrestricted free agent this summer, league sources told The Vertical.
Gallinari will become one of the top available forwards in the July marketplace, but league sources say that he remains open to the possibility of returning to the Nuggets on a long-term deal.
Denver GM Tim Connelly has expressed a strong desire to keep Gallinari as part of the franchise’s core.
Nick Kosmider of The Denver Post added the following as well:
Nuggets GM Tim Connelly has said attempting to work a deal with Gallo will be part of offseason blueprint.
— Nick Kosmider (@NickKosmider) May 30, 2017
Gallinari’s free agency figures to be among the most interesting this summer. He isn’t a max superstar, but he could land near-max money if most of the other big names re-sign with their incumbent teams right away. The Nuggets will have to decide how much they’re willing to spend on a soon-to-be 29-year-old who may have aged himself out of their projected window.
A lot about this situation depends on the Nuggets’ own free-agency pursuits. Renounce Gallinari’s $22.5 million cap hold, and they’ll have more than $30 million in cap space—enough to max out a Blake Griffin or Gordon Hayward. Waive Mike Miller after renouncing Gallo, and they’ll have more than $35 million in room—enough to peddle maxes to 10-plus year vets like Kyle Lowry and Chris Paul.
Armed with that much cap space and an ability to still hammer out a blockbuster trade, the Nuggets could look drastically different next season. Or they could look the same. Or they could be something in between. We don’t know.
Any changes they do or don’t make, though, begin with their approach Gallinari’s free agency.
