Nuggets will soon come to a Tim Hardaway Jr. realization that Mavericks always knew

Last offseason, almost immediately after the NBA Finals ended, the Dallas Mavericks traded Tim Hardaway Jr. and three second-round picks to the Detroit Pistons for Quentin Grimes. It was clear that the Mavs were looking to trade him, and after one season with the Pistons, he signed a one-year deal with the Denver Nuggets to join Nikola Jokic and company.

Nuggets fans are fired up about adding Hardaway Jr., as he brings plenty of shooting and scoring off the bench, and Denver is quickly going to realize that Hardaway Jr. is an excellent piece off the bench who can get hot quickly, light it up from downtown, and score in bunches.

In Detroit, Hardaway Jr. was forced to start on the wing every single game, and while he had some great moments for the Pistons, his streakiness exposed that he is much better as a bench player and a spot starter rather than a full-time starter.

Tim Hardaway Jr. is at his best off the bench

While Hardaway Jr.'s time with the Mavs came with some undeniable struggles in his final season, it also came with some big-time shotmaking that fans won't forget. Hardaway Jr. was a crucial piece off the bench in Dallas for many years, and he seemed to be at his best when he was in a comfortable and consistent role off the bench.

The Nuggets' depth on the wing and in the starting lineup will allow the coaching staff to gauge when to bring in Hardaway Jr.'s shooting rather than having to rely upon it right from the jump, and this strategy proved to succeed in Dallas for most of his tenure. As a Maverick, Hardaway Jr. finished in the top 10 for Sixth Man of the Year voting twice, proving that he can be a deadly spark plug when given the right role and consistent playing time.

Last season, the Nuggets shot the fewest 3-pointers per game in the entire NBA, and if there's one thing that the Mavericks know, it's that Hardaway Jr. isn't afraid to let it fly from 3-point land. Over Hardaway Jr.'s 352 career games with the Mavs, he averaged 7.5 3-point attempts per game, before this number ultimately dropped to 5.9 attempts per game with the Pistons, even as a starter.

As a shooter, sporadic minutes and varying confidence from your coaches and teammates can kill your flow and consistency, and if Hardaway Jr. can carve himself a valuable role, Nuggets fans will be thrilled with his production.

The Nuggets are going to need all of the 3-point attempts they can get next year, as they must begin taking some more threes, and Hardaway Jr. will help them move in the right direction in that department. This isn't to say that Denver shot poorly from downtown last season, as they shot 37.6 percent from three as a team, which ranked fifth in the NBA, but they clearly need to begin to shoot some more attempts, given the way the NBA is trending.

In his new role in Denver, Hardaway Jr. will have the chance to get back to playing his best, as he can be used as a complementary piece alongside Jokic and Jamal Murray. The on and off-ball gravity of his teammates is bound to get him plenty of open looks, and he'll be on a mission to prove the doubters wrong.