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

It’s the time of year when everyone and their uncle has fake trades they want to propose and see happen for their favorite NBA teams. The rumor mill will be crazy for the next couple of months and surely things will happen that we can’t even fathom right now.

The Nuggets certainly aren’t the most interesting team to speculate about this offseason. For one, they have been steady contenders building through the draft for years. They’ve made a couple of big moves along the way, but they aren’t really in a position to shake things up. 

Beyond that, the team is right up against the second apron of the salary cap, so even if they wanted to make big moves, it would be very difficult. The most likely moves for the team are ones around the margins that will improve depth and the bench and possibly free up some money down the road.

But even a relatively uninteresting team by NBA standards can still have an incredibly interesting and impactful offseason with a number of transactions along the way. That’s what people are expecting in Denver. After falling short this season, the team needs to make some changes, and the team isn’t getting any younger or less expensive.

Fake trade ideas for the Denver Nuggets

There have been plenty of hypothetical trade proposals that I’ve tackled on the blog already this offseason, mostly coming from national media members. Some of those trades were reasonable and made sense for the Nuggets, but some were probably wishful thinking and ultimately not very likely to happen.

Now let’s focus on one of the best in local media, Ryan Blackburn, who covers the Nuggets for Mile High Sports in Denver. Ryan also hosts the Pickaxe and Roll podcast and that’s where he played trade roulette for almost an hour on the June 5th episode of the show.

Blackburn entertained trades proposed by fans and listeners for several minutes; many of them weren’t legal trades, many were impractical or unrealistic, but there were a few solid ideas. At the end of the show, Blackburn gave his four best offers that he had created himself. Let’s break them down and grade how much they’d help the Nuggets one by one.

Trade idea #1: Nuggets flip Zeke Nnaji and Reggie Jackson to Charlotte for Nick Richards and Vasilije Micic

This would be an incredible deal for the Nuggets as they’d basically just be upgrading at two positions. Richards is a very solid backup center and is still just 26 years old. Micic is 30 years old, but he just came over to the NBA last season. He’s proven to be a very solid offensive guard already.

Unfortunately, for the reasons I outlined above, I’m not sure why the Hornets would agree to this trade. They’d have to be extremely high on Nnaji, otherwise, I think the Nuggets would have to add some draft capital or another young player to make this deal work.

But the overall idea is a good one. The Nuggets would be trading a project in Nnaji and someone who is mostly washed up in Jackson. Those guys should not be in the rotation for an NBA championship contender. Richards and Micic can both play and would immediately be upgrades to Michael Malone’s bench.

The Nuggets should be willing to toss in some second-round picks if they need to sweeten the deal. It’s not crazy to think the Hornets could be looking to move Richards and/or Micic, but if they do, those players should draw some solid interest and they’d likely be able to get more than the Nuggets can offer. If the Hornets would do this deal then this is a no-brainer. 

Realistic rating: 4/10

Grade for Nuggets: A

Grade for Hornets: D

Trade idea #2: Nuggets send Zeke Nnaji, Julian Strawther, and the 28th pick to Chicago for Ayo Dosunmu and Torrey Craig

This trade would be a dream come true for the Nuggets as they’d be parting with zero rotation players and getting back a really good two-way player in Dosunmu and a respectable veteran role player in Craig. But again, therein lies the problem; why would the Bulls do this?

The Bulls haven’t shown any willingness to trade Dosunmu, who had a bit of a breakout year in Chicago this season. He’s still just 24 years old and on a very cheap deal. If anything he is one of the Bulls’ most attractive assets and most promising young players.

Trading Ayo away would make no sense for the Bulls, but that organization hasn’t exactly been known for doing things that make a lot of sense lately. There is a chance they want to move on from the possible budding young star, but if they do, they should be able to get a really good trade package.

Frankly, the Nuggets don’t have the goods to get this deal done if Chicago opens it up to a bidding war. Maybe the Chicago front office is completely enamored with Julian Strawther, but otherwise, I think this is a long shot at best. But much like the first deal, if the Bulls are willing, the Nuggets should say yes and hang up the phone immediately.

Realistic rating: 2/10

Grade for Nuggets: A+

Grade for Bulls: F

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-

Trade idea #4: Nuggets give Michael Porter Jr. and Reggie Jackson to Atlanta for De'Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic

Here’s the trade that every Nuggets fan wants to see, the one that reunites the Serbian boys, Jokic and Bogdanovic. This iteration seems reasonable for both sides. Hunter is overpaid and a contract the Hawks would like to get rid of, but he’s still a solid wing defender and a good athlete. We’ve seen much worse players find their groove playing with Jokic. 

Bogey would be the real prize for Denver as he’s become a great all-around offensive player; someone who can run the offense, handle and pass the ball, and he can hit shots with the best of them. He’d be a fun addition to the Nuggets on a very solid contract and his friendship and chemistry with Jokic would be a massive bonus.

The question here is would the Hawks have any interest in Michale Porter Jr. and his contract? It’s a bit of a burden but the direction of their team is questionable and they could be willing to see how the 25-year-old MPJ looks as a knockdown three-point shooting partner for Trae Young or Dejounte Murray (or whoever is left after this offseason). 

At the end of the day, I’m not sure either party completely loves this deal, which means it’s probably a fair deal. Both sides get off a contract they don’t love and get a look at some players with intrigue. It’s probably farfetched, but it just might work.

Realistic rating: 6/10

Grade for Nuggets: B-

Grade for Hawks C-