4 Michael Porter Jr. trades the Denver Nuggets should strongly consider
By Ben Handler
Trade #4: Nuggets get a grab bag of cheap flyers
MPJ > SAS
I poo-pooed a similar trade to this one recently that was proposed by Bleacher Report but there are a few key differences here. For one, at the time of that article, the Nuggets were still playing and Porter Jr. had been one of their best players in the first-round win over the Lakers. MPJ petered out in round two, as did the rest of the team and now it looks like change is needed.
But on top of that, this is a better deal because in that trade the Nuggets were also giving up Nnaji and the 28th pick and were taking on Zach Collins and his contract instead of the smorgasbord of Bassey, Champagnie, and Branham.
Keldon Johnson is a solid player who could replace about 80% of what Porter does for almost half the cost. He could start or come off the bench and does multiple things at a high level. He’s also a great target as a guy who has been overtasked in San Antonio on bad teams but could thrive as more of a premier role player on a winning team like the Nuggets (much like the Aaron Gordon trajectory).
The Nuggets would also get solid depth with Tre Jones as backup point guard and three young players with potential in Bassey, Champagnie, and Branham, all on cheap contracts. Even if just one of those three guys were able to crack the rotation and contribute that would be a huge win.
Starting Lineup:
G - Jamal Murray
G - Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
F - Keldon Johnson
F - Aaron Gordon
C - Nikola Jokic
Bench:
G - Tre Jones
G/F - Christian Braun
G - Malakhi Branham
F - Julian Champagnie
F - Peyton Watson
C - Charles Bassey
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