Nuggets sign CSU Rams star to add wing depth

The Denver Nuggets are bringing another familiar face back to Colorado.

The Nuggets are signing former Colorado State star David Roddy to a two-way contract, according to multiple reports. To create the roster spot, the Nuggets are waiving two-way guard Tamar Bates, who has missed much of the year with a broken foot.

Roddy, 24, was the 2021-22 Mountain West Conference Player of the Year at Colorado State, where he averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists while shooting 57.1% from the field and 43.8% from 3-point range during his final collegiate season. He led the Rams to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in nine seasons, earning CSU’s highest seed in program history. He was a culture setter too, as they went back to the dance twice in the following three years after he left school.

The hefty 6-foot-4, 255-pound forward was selected No. 23 overall by Philadelphia in the 2022 NBA Draft but quickly had his rights traded to Memphis. Since entering the league, Roddy has appeared in 168 games across four seasons with Memphis, Phoenix, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Houston and most recently Toronto, averaging 6.2 points and 2.9 rebounds per game.

Roddy’s physicality, versatility and scoring touch gives Denver a different look on the wing than the team’s recent four-guard lineups. At Colorado State, he was lauded for his ability to guard multiple positions and use his strength on both ends of the floor. His 3-point shooting has been inconsistent at the NBA level — he’s a career 30.2% shooter from deep — but his size and motor could translate well in a limited role behind the bevy of injuries the Nuggets have faced at the forward position this season with all of Aaron Gordon, Cameron Johnson, Peyton Watson missing at least a month each and right now Spencer Jones has missed about half of the last dozen games too.

For Nuggets fans in Colorado, the signing carries local appeal. Roddy remains one of the most accomplished players in CSU basketball history and he joins a bench which recently added Buffaloes star KJ Simpson, also on a two-way deal. Neither will be eligible for the playoffs but given they can each help Denver survive the final month of the season, which is huge given the team has been performing at a .500-level for nearly 40 games now. Add in the full-time addition of Jones and the signing of Tyus Jones and the end of Denver’s bench has had a bit of a makeover in the past month.

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