The LA Clippers could’ve easily made a run at DeMar DeRozan in an attempt to sign him in unrestricted free agency. He brings experience, scoring, playmaking, and ultimately the ability to help a team compete at the highest level. Still, despite once reportedly registering interest, the Clippers wisely kept their distance, primarily because DeRozan cannot space the floor effectively, which is a requirement for any guard or wing in the modern era.
The Denver Nuggets, however, looked past DeRozan’s biggest flaw following the departure of Peyton Watson, and chose to sign the veteran to a one-year, $3.9 million deal. This is a mistake, through and through, as he will show them just how much the lack of shooting will take a toll on the entire offense.
For context, DeRozan is a career 30.2% shooter from beyond the arc and has never shot above 34% with the exception of 2021-22 (35.2%).
The Clippers will be glad they didn’t take part in the DeRozan experiment that will inevitably fail
In the mind of the Denver Nuggets, they probably view DeMar DeRozan as someone who can score the rock at a high level, which is what they need, as they just lost an extremely valuable offensive option in Peyton Watson.
And, to their credit, DeRozan will help. He has averaged 18 points and above for more than a decade now on several different teams in each conference.
What they didn’t stop to consider is that just because a player can consistently get buckets doesn’t mean he’ll automatically fit.
With the Nuggets, DeRozan is bound to fail.
Beyond simply scoring, Denver needs a player who can cut off the ball, space the floor, and leave an impact on the game without the ball in his hands. This is the type of guy that would complement players like Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, who are the face of the Nuggets’ franchise.
Quite frankly, that’s the opposite of who DeRozan is. Rather, he is ball-dominant, struggles to move around because he isn’t a threat on the perimeter, and doesn’t contribute much to winning.
So, by the middle of the season, when the Nuggets’ front office has realized their efforts for DeRozan were a failure and are trying to trade him, the LA Clippers will be happy as can be knowing they avoided the whole mess.
DeRozan is solid, but his inability to shoot is problematic, to say the least.
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