Should Denver Nuggets Revisit Iman Shumpert Trade Talks?

New York Knicks shooting guard Iman Shumpert (21) doing what he does best – – defend! Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

One of the hottest Denver Nugget trade rumors last season revolved around Kenneth Faried for Iman Shumpert of the New York Knicks.  I hated the idea then and still hate the idea now.  The disliking of the idea was due to the notion of giving up on Faried.  Although I do not expect the Nuggets to extend Faried before the season starts, I do not want the Nuggets to move him.

I do however like the idea of adding Iman Shumpert to Denver if the price is right.  Simply stated, Iman Shumpert is a shooting guard without a great shooting touch or great playmaking ability BUT is setting himself up to be quite the defensive specialist.  From a trade deadline article by Yahoo Sports Doug Brockwell,

"“Ty Lawson can get his own shot and Wilson Chandler has nights where he’ll fill up the stat sheet, but with Danilo Gallinari out Denver is missing a guy who can reliably give them close to 20 points a night. If The Nuggets had a great scoring wing, it might make more sense to add a defensive specialist to the backcourt.”"

Danilo Gallinari, and his career average of 14.5 points per game, should be back in time for the 2014-15 season.  For Denver to be successful, either Gallo or Wilson Chandler need to score 20 points in a given game from the small forward position.  Using Doug Brockwell’s logic, that would justify Denver bringing an Iman Shumpert prototype.

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Recently the New York Post had an article surmising that new President Phil Jackson may re-visit trade talks with the Oklahoma City Thunder about Iman Shumpert.  The reported offer on the table from the last trade deadline was OKC’s  29th overall pick in the NBA draft.  OKC also holds the 21st pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.  Iman Shumpert was originally drafted 17th overall in the 2011 NBA draft.  Therefore giving up our number 11 pick in the 2014 draft seems a bit steep of a price.  Would offering the New York Knicks both Nugget second round picks be enough?  Can Denver’s first pick from last year’s draft Erick Green be used to entice Phil Jackson into dealing Shumpert to Denver?

Acquiring Iman Shumpert is not a method to supplant Randy Foye as the starting shooting guard.  Rather acquiring Shumpert is a way to push Evan Fournier.  I see Shumpert complimenting Fournier much like Darrel Arthur compliments Kenneth Faried.  I could see a Shumpert/Fournier duo becoming a great rotation at the 2 in the coming years.

From a recent Chris Dempsey article from the Denver Post,

"“So they’ll retool, and they’ll start by using the pick as a key cog in the improvement. Trading the selection for a veteran and moving up in the draft are the two areas of most interest to the Nuggets.“I don’t think things will pick up until the next week or so,” Connelly said. “But after a relatively quiet trade deadline, I think we’ll see a more active build-up to the draft. I would imagine we’ll have a lot of trades.”The Nuggets haven’t ruled out using the pick, which in this talented, deep draft, could net them a player they could certainly use.”"

Acquiring Iman Shumpert for second round draft picks does so without giving up future potential.  Shumpert has not yet reached his ceiling in the NBA but is more advanced than Fournier and obviously more advanced than a second round draft pick would be.  If the Nuggets could acquire Shumpert while keeping the #11 pick and not moving a body from last year’s roster, then the price is right!

Thoughts?