The Denver Nuggets have been getting their squad ready for the start of the NBA season, and on Wednesday Danilo Gallinari and rookie Kenneth Faried made some positive impressions with their play, while Ty Lawson continues his push for playing time with the first unit. Gallinari, acquired from the New York Knicks in the Carmelo Anthony trade last season, is a young forward looking for a breakout season, while rookie first-round pick Kenneth Faried is hoping to translate his college rebounding prowess to the NBA. Vic Lombardi of CBS 102.3FM in Denver spent some time watching the team scrimmage and came away with the following impressions:
@VicLombardi
Vic LombardiJumping to conclusions after watching one Nuggets scrimmage: Faried is the real deal. Gallo's the best player on this team.
25 minutes ago via TweetCaster for iOS · powered by @socialditto
With Nene now back in the fold on a five-year, $67 million deal, it is difficult to take the claim about Gallinari being the best player too seriously, but the good news is that there is some visual evidence of improvement from the young talent.
As for the point guard competition between Ty Lawson and crafty veteran Andre Miller, Aaron Lopez of Nuggets.com sees an early 60/40 split favoring Lawson, with additional potential to see both players on the floor at the same time. It will interesting to see how head coach George Karl handles the rotation with two diversely talented point guards at his disposal.
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