Ranking the Denver Nuggets’ trade assets

3 – Zeke Nnaji

In the 2020 NBA Draft, the Denver Nuggets decided to take Arizona big man Zeke Nnaji. The draft pick did not really hit, as he barely plays for the team anymore. He may get more minutes now that the team is lacking a lot of big man depth, but it’s not set in stone that he’ll be a full-time rotation player next season.

This year is his last year on his contract until he reaches restricted free agency, assuming Denver will give him the qualifying offer. If the Nuggets do not give him the qualifying offer, he will be an unrestricted free agent, and he can sign anywhere he wants.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him traded this season. He didn’t really pan out as a player for the team, and the Nuggets do want to compete for a title. Trading in a young asset like Nnaji could give them a boost to their team. It’s hard to say what Nnaji’s future will look like for the Denver Nuggets, as well as his career in general.

2 – Julian Strawther

Julian Strawther was the 29th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and his rights were traded from the Oklahoma City Thunder to Denver about a week prior to draft night. He’s 21 years old and is one of the younger players on Denver’s roster.

He is young, but his ceiling is hard to project. He is an older rookie than some but still has room to grow. He may not be oozing with untapped potential, but he’s still a solid player. Strawther will be a good player, maybe not an All-Star, but a solid role player for this Nuggets roster in his rookie year.

Strawther’s like a swiss army knife. Decent at pretty much everything, but does not really excel in any specific attribute. Like Nnaji, he could be moved around the trade deadline if the Nuggets don’t see enough production out of him, or they want to add another veteran or two to the team.