Well, that didn't take long. After the Cleveland Cavaliers flamed out in four games against the juggernaut New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, the thought was that the Cavs could be unhappy with their roster. And if they were, perhaps Evan Mobley could have been a shot the Nuggets could have taken a swing at. But the latest rumor pours cold water on that idea almost as fast as it came up.
On paper, a Jamal Murray-for-Mobley swap lined up perfectly. But according to NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, it sounds like the Cavs are going to hang onto Mobley for the foreseeable future. An excerpt from The Stein Line indicates the Cavs could even be hesitant to let Mobley go in a trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo.
"Mobley, at 24, is regarded in Cleveland as the sort of player who could offer a legitimate bridge to a successful post-Mitchell future. The Cavaliers, remembering how hard life was after James walked away from the franchise — twice — are obviously reluctant to surrender Mobley and the staying power he is projected to represent unless it's a sure-thing trade."
Mobley still represents what the Nuggets should search for
If the Cavs wouldn't deal Mobley for Giannis, they probably wouldn't be trading him for Murray either. But that doesn't mean the Nuggets should abandon their search for more defense, athleticism, and youth this offseason.
Mobley was the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year last year, and it was the second time in his five-year career that he made the NBA's All-Defensive First Team. That's the type of tenacity the Nuggets and their 21st-ranked defense couldn't replicate, even if they tried.
While it is difficult to check all the boxes with a single player swap, as Mobley nearly does, the Nuggets can still find a few trades that work if they get creative enough.
The Nuggets may have more trade chips than thought
The Nuggets could have more trade chips than originally thought. Besides the top pieces of Murray and Cameron Johnson, thanks to his expiring contract, the Nuggets could be able to move Christian Braun or Aaron Gordon, too.
Nuggets fans didn't think Braun would garner much interest, if any, after the dreadful postseason performance he had against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and his five-year, $125 million extension kicking in. But there have been grumblings with the word "trade" attached to Braun's name, and that certainly caught our ears, even if it came in speculation.
Gordon's health concerns could pop up as a block in some moves, but even his name has been mentioned in speculation, showing there may be more of a market for Gordon than originally thought as well.
It should be an active summer of searching for ways to upgrade the roster and to plan for the next few years around Nikola Jokic. The gap between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder is only growing wider. If the Nuggets are serious, they'll look for more players who have a defensive profile, like Mobley, to pair with Jokic.
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