Why Andre Miller Is an Integral Part of the Denver Nuggets Rebuilding Process

Throughout his NBA career, Andre Miller has been known to be a fundamentally sound player that gets the job done and can be counted on. Miller is not a flashy, point guard, but has shown that he has the ability to be a leader. With a career scoring average of 14.4 points per game, and entering his 12th NBA season, Miller has seen it all. Even Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl wanted to acquire Miller who he believes will help turn things around in Denver.

He is now ready to help the Denver Nuggets in the midst of a rebuilding period, including tutoring point guard Ty Lawson.

Entering the league in the 1999 NBA Draft after a steady college basketball career at the University of Utah, Miller is currently ready to start his second stint with the Denver Nuggets after acquired in a multi-team draft night trade.

Miller arrived in Denver in 2003 after spending three years in Cleveland and only one year with the Los Angeles Clippers. By choosing to come into Denver, Miller made the most of the opportunity by showing his leadership skills taking a young team under his wing. In a little over three seasons, Miller played in 269 regular season games and 15 playoff games while averaging 13.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 7.6 assists leading a young Nuggets team into the postseason.

The reason Miller was not in Denver longer was that the Nuggets made the decision to trade for longtime Philadelphia 76ers star guard Allen Iverson and Miller was included in the deal. Miller was not happy about going to a team that was in the midst of rebuilding, but moved on and two-and-a-half years later, signed a contract offer with the Portland TrailBlazers during the free-agency signing period.

Now Miller is back in Denver and ready to help the team make some noise in the post Carmelo Anthony era. The Nuggets have potentially lost Kenyon Martin, Wilson Chandler and J.R. Smith for the 2011-12 season to the Chinese Basketball Association, so there are going to be some new faces on the roster.

Younger players such as Danilo Gallinari, Jordan Hamilton, Kenneth Faried and Timofey Mozgov could be getting minutes, as head coach George Karl looks to build a new team.