The season has come to an end for the Denver Nuggets, and not many could have seen this result coming. After spending the majority of the regular season at or near the top of the Western Conference, the Nuggets lost a crucial contest to the Spurs in the 81st game of the season that ultimately cost them the top seed in the playoffs.
Being relegated to the second seed earned them a second-round matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves, which would prove to be their undoing as we saw Sunday night. A gritty, physically imposing team that is essentially built to stop Denver, the Wolves became the first team to beat the Nuggets in a playoff series in over two calendar years.
All things considered, it is still rather impressive that Denver nearly came away from this series in victory. After going down 0-2, no one seemed to think they had a chance, and many predicted a sweep. But a loss is a loss regardless, and now the Nuggets will be putting together their plan for how to improve headed into next season. As of right now, one of the biggest hindrances to this same group returning is the financial side of things.
With their current payroll, Denver is unlikely to be able to pay Michael Porter Jr. the $35.9 million he will be owed next season while keeping all their other main pieces in place. Of course, one of the main pitfalls of success is the financial constraints that often come with it. With that in mind, these are four teams that could make sense as trade partners should the Nuggets opt to seek a deal for MPJ.
1. Utah Jazz
A middle of the pack Western Conference team, the Utah Jazz are a team stuck somewhere in between playoff hopeful and bottom feeder. When they moved off Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell two offseasons ago, it seemed they were headed into a hard rebuild.
But the reality has been a sort of pseudo retool with them actually being in the playoff field for much of the last two regular seasons before ultimately failing to make the postseason. We know that with known savvy businessman Danny Ainge acting as Utah's General Manager, the organization will be in the business of taking risks in their dealings.
The Jazz of course employ the talented Lauri Markkanen, one of the most talented shooting big men in the association today. Denver would have to put together a huge package, but trading Porter for someone a bit more capable at creating their own shot could be an excellent move.