THE DENVER NUGGETS ACQUIRE JAVALE MCGEE
Denver, Mar. 26, 2021 – The Denver Nuggets have acquired center JaVale McGee from Cleveland in exchange for center Isaiah Hartenstein and two future second round picks (one protected), President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly announced today.
McGee, 7-0, 270, has appeared in 33 games for the Cavaliers this season, averaging 8.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.21 blocks while shooting 52.1% from the field in 15.2 minutes per game. The 13-year NBA veteran returns to Denver after spending four seasons as a Nugget from 2011 to 2015. McGee was drafted with the 18th overall pick by Washington in the 2008 NBA Draft and appeared in a total of 734 career games (318 starts) owning averages of 7.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.50 blocks on 57.2% shooting from the field.
The Flint, Michigan native is coming off a 2019-20 campaign with the Los Angeles Lakers that saw him win his third Championship in four seasons. He started 11 games for the Lakers in the NBA Bubble in Orlando during their Championship run and he played an integral role for the Warriors during their back-to-back Championship seasons in 2017 and 2018. McGee has appeared in a total of 58 playoff games (23 starts).
Hartenstein, 7-0, 249, appeared in 30 games for Denver, averaging 3.5 points and 2.8 rebounds in 9.2 minutes per game. He’s appeared in a total of 81 career games (two starts) with averages of 3.3 points and 2.7 rebounds for Houston and Denver. Hartenstein was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the 43rd overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft after playing overseas and signed as a free agent with the Nuggets prior to this season.
