Nugg Love
Fansided

How the Kawhi Leonard trade impacts the Denver Nuggets

By Grayson Moore

SAN ANTONIO, TX - JANUARY 13: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the San Antonio Spurs is introduced before the game against the Denver Nuggets on January 13, 2018 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photos by Mark Sobhani/NBAE via Getty Images)
SAN ANTONIO, TX - JANUARY 13: Kawhi Leonard #2 of the San Antonio Spurs is introduced before the game against the Denver Nuggets on January 13, 2018 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photos by Mark Sobhani/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 6
Next
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Nuggets Can’t Trade for Leonard Anymore

Some may view this as a negative. Others as a positive. Let’s look at it from both points of view.

Negative

The Nuggets have the pieces to be competitive now. Jokic and Millsap are All-Star caliber players and they have the bench depth to make a trade work(Barton, Thomas, Lyles, Plumlee, etc.).

A trade centered around Murray and/or Harris could have worked and given the Nuggets a chance to contend in the West for at least one year. Now, they aren’t even a lock for the playoffs.

Positive

Leonard has been proven to be a petty, whiny, self-serving little baby. He could become something of a locker room cancer in Denver if he doesn’t want to play here (he doesn’t, he wants to go to LA). Plus, the Nuggets are looking like the next Warriors.

Murray is an up-and-coming 3-point specialist with decent vision and improving defending chops. Harris is a premier 3-and-D shooting guard in the league. If we traded one or both of them for Kawhi, we’d be losing our youth prodigies for a one-year rental that probably couldn’t even beat the Warriors.

With Will Barton back and Isaiah Thomas on the bench, anything could happen in Denver this season. They don’t need Kawhi to suck up attention and developing time from the young prospects.

Whichever camp you fall into, you have to agree that the Nuggets not being able to trade for Kawhi anymore at least somewhat affects them.

It sucks to see a top-5 player in the league go anywhere except your favorite team, so every fan base excluding the Raptors(and probably the Spurs) should be unhappy right now.

Home/Nuggets News