NBA media mogul suggests Nuggets should trade for disgruntled star

The Nuggets don’t have a lot of options for their roster going forward that are readily apparent. Despite their claims of creating future flexibility by letting Kentavious Caldwell-Pope walk, the team has invested in their core four players and their young talent.

Assuming they extend Aaron Gordon in the coming days, this team is going to be very expensive for a long time. The roster should be good, but if it’s not quite good enough, they won’t have many ways to upgrade without resorting to something drastic.

One of the few remaining “drastic” options for the team would be trading Michael Porter Jr. and his ~$40 million a year salary. This isn’t exactly breaking news or any kind of hot take, it’s just connecting some dots and something that many have long speculated about.

Bill Simmons suggests Nuggets trade for Brandon Ingram

But on a recent episode of the Bill Simmons Podcast, he and Zach Lowe (formerly of ESPN) previewed the NBA season and in the waning minutes, Simmons threw out a fascinating take; that the Nuggets should trade for the Pelican’s Brandon Ingram.

Ingram’s situation in New Orleans has become an interesting one as he’s set to enter the final year of his deal. All signs indicate that Ingram and his camp want a max contract, but the Pelicans seem unwilling to make that offer.

This has created a bit of an impasse where Ingram is clearly available via trade, but no team has stepped up, knowing they’d have to pay him. Ingram was absent from a voluntary training camp and at this point, it basically feels that any team who is willing to take on Ingram and his future salary can have him.

So is that something the Nuggets should want? On the one hand, Ingram is a really good player; a borderline star who can get to his spots and score in the midrange with the best of them. Based on talent alone, he’s a top 25 (or so) player in the NBA at one of the most premium positions, and he’s still only 27 years old.

He has averaged over 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists per game in three straight seasons while playing solid defense and has a little bit of inside/outside game at 6 foot 8. But the knock on Ingram is that he’s not quite good enough to be the main guy, and he’s not adaptable enough to be a supplementary piece.

He doesn’t shoot enough threes (which is already a problem for the Nuggets) and has been prone to disappearing in big moments and when he doesn’t have the ball. He’s a good defender, but not great and he can easily get picked on due to his skinny frame.

Would Ingram be a fit in Denver?

But part of Ingram’s issues are based on his current situation as his game just has too much overlap with that of Zion Williamson. With a change of scenery, Ingram could thrive and reach new levels. He would be a true star on the wing in between Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic and immediately one of the best third options in the league. 

Murray plays more on the perimeter and Jokic can obviously play down low, so this could open up the midrange for Ingram - where he loves to operate. He’s a better overall player than Michael Porter Jr. and the talent upgrade to the starting lineup would be immediate. Playing off of a guy like Jokic could really unlock Ingram’s game and elevate him to another level.

The biggest concern with a deal like this would be the three-point shooting. The Nuggets already shoot way too few threes and MPJ is one of their best. He is perfect for the role he fills in Denver. If Ingram is willing to live outside a bit more and fire up threes, this could be an absolute steal and make the Nuggets clear favorites in the West.

But if he can’t adapt, his talents could be wasted and the floor spacing could become a major issue. On top of that, the team would be locked into an extremely expensive roster and would be sacrificing all of the future flexibility they’ve been preaching. It’s a major risk, and for the reward it’s worth considering, but ultimately it’s probably a price too high unless Ingram is willing to compromise.