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Updated: January 6, 2009, 3:50 PM ET

PER Diem: Jan. 6, 2009

The Nuggets are clearing space for a possible big trade before the deadline.

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By John Hollinger
ESPN.com
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Scott Cunningham/NBAE/Getty ImagesWith Melo on the shelf, are the Nuggets going to push for a trade before the deadline?

A quick clarification before we get started: Several Pistons fans e-mailed me Monday, upset at my calling their win in L.A. on Sunday the result of a horrific goaltend by Al Thornton. Apparently they thought I was saying it was a horrific call, but what I was trying to say, and apparently communicated badly, was that it was a horrific play by Thornton. And it's hardly the first time he's goaltended a ball that was rather obviously on the way down. Sorry for the confusion.

With that out of the way, it's time to discuss somebody who was on the Pistons roster until very recently: Cheikh Samb. No, he's not going to have an impact on this season, but his trade by the Nuggets to the Clippers on Monday might.

The deal sent Samb and enough cash to cover his salary to L.A. for a conditional second-round pick in 2015 -- basically, it was a salary dump with the Clippers much like the Marcus Camby trade earlier this summer.

The importance? By unloading Samb, the Nuggets have put themselves under the luxury-tax line, fulfilling an offseason mandate from owner Stan Kroenke that seemed like a rather lofty goal at the time.

But thanks to three trades (Iverson-for-Billups, Samb-for-nothing, Camby-for-nothing), the Nuggets not only are under the line, they were even able to re-sign J.R. Smith and add Renaldo Balkman while staying below the tax.

And now, heading into the trade deadline, they have some assets that can be used to net them something positive, as opposed to being used as a bride inducement in a salary dump -- up until Monday, many had expected the latter to be Denver's primary trade activity before the deadline.

They have enough pieces to do something major if the right deal presents itself. The Nuggets have Chucky Atkins' quasi-expiring contract worth $3.24 million (he's guaranteed for only $700K next season), Steven Hunter's 2010 expiring contract worth $3.86 million, their own first-round pick, and a lottery-protected pick belonging to Charlotte. Denver can also throw Linas Kleiza into a deal, though that's unlikely to happen until the team knows Carmelo Anthony's hand is OK.

Look for the Nuggets to continue their pursuit of a quality big man to round out the frontcourt rotation, but this deal also opens the floor up for some other options should something fall out of the sky and into their laps, a la Pau Gasol with the Lakers last season.

Already, the Nuggets are in pretty good shape, provided Anthony isn't out for an extended period -- they project to finish with 52 wins and take either the second or third seed in the Western Conference as of Monday, and with seven of the next eight at home they should be able to shrug off Anthony's absence if it's only for a couple of weeks.

John Hollinger writes for ESPN Insider. To e-mail him, click here.