Many players were rumored to be in deals to the Denver Nuggets ahead of the trade deadline, but none came to fruition. Several of the players who changed teams were known to be targets of the Nuggets, while others were more speculative potential additions.
One dream of Nuggets fans is always to see the team bring in countrymen of Nikola Jokic who have played with the MVP on the Serbian National Team. That’s only a few players currently in the NBA, but most of them are acquirable role players and several moved at the deadline.
The team has famously been connected to Bogdan Bogdanovic over the years, but the Nuggets had no way to add him without sacrificing Michael Porter Jr., which simply didn’t make sense. Bogey was dealt from the Hawks to the Clippers at the deadline and that dream pursuit for Denver will have to continue for another year.
Vasilije Micic already eyeing return to EuroLeague
Another player who has been in rumors to come to Denver for the past few years is Vasilije Micic. Micic was an MVP point guard in the EuroLeague but hasn’t totally clicked in the NBA since coming over.
Micic hasn’t been able to carve out a meaningful role with the Thunder or Hornets and he has now been traded to the Suns. He may have better success in Phoenix, but this trade for the Suns was more about getting off the contract of Jusuf Nurkic and adding Cody Martin. Any help Micic can provide will be a bonus.
In fact, despite having a team option for next season, Micic has already telegraphed his intention to return to Europe. He has already started making his demands known to powerhouse teams in the EuroLeague where he’d like to be the highest-paid player.
Micic would have stayed in NBA to team up with Jokic
According to a report from Euro Hoops, Micic would have stayed in the NBA if he had been traded to Denver. He wanted to team up with the Joker and would have been open to staying in the NBA for that particular scenario only.
Unfortunately, it didn’t happen and we’re likely seeing the last of Micic in the NBA as he wastes away in Phoenix. Micic’s salary of almost $8 million made it very hard for Denver to acquire the backup guard. It would have been fun to see him and Jokic make magic together for the Nuggets like they have for Serbia, but it just wasn’t practical.
It’s pretty cool to hear players actually wanting to go to Denver and team up with Jokic, it’s just a shame it isn’t a better player. Maybe we’ll see this in the future with Bogey, or ever the much younger Nikola Jovic. For now, the Nuggets will just have to focus on adding talented players that were not born in Serbia.