Grade the trade pitches: NBA writer & podcaster offers 4 Nuggets deals for summer

Trade idea #3: Nuggets ship Zeke Nnaji to Houston in exchange for Jock Landale

This trade is about as straightforward as it gets, and it may just make sense for all parties involved. Landale is a more conventional backup NBA center. At 28 years old, he is what he is, and the Nuggets could use that kind of reliability off the bench right now. He’d be a perfectly suitable backup for Nikola Jokic.

At 6’11”, Landale has shown a decent ability to score inside and rebound for teams off the bench with credible defense and rim protection. He’s absolutely nothing special, but he’s been solid and consistent. That’s just what the doctor ordered for the Denver bench.

Nnaji on the other hand is more of a small ball center and based on this year, he’s still a bit of a project. That could work for the young, up-and-coming Houston Rockets. They don’t have much use for Landale but could take a shot on a young center or power forward who could grow along with the team.

Both players have very similar contracts and years on their deals. This whole thing could get ironed out pretty easily and both players and teams may be better off for it. This probably makes too much sense to happen in real life, but it checks a lot of boxes without getting overly creative.

Realistic rating: 8/10

Grade for Nuggets: B

Grade for Rockets: B-