The Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed to terms on a trade to send Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets, along with the 28th pick of the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft, in return for only the 33rd pick of the same draft. The Timberwolves wanted to cut salary and will receive no player in return, but they will free up $33.3 million in cap space for 2026-27, according to ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
That could be the reality the Nuggets face when they go to trade either Cameron Johnson or Christian Braun to stay under the second-apron tax. The Nuggets already had to attach a 2032 first-round pick to shed salary from Michael Porter Jr. to acquire Johnson last offseason. And now, the market is showing you can basically get out from under a contract you don't want like a free agent leaving town.
Which, maybe, wouldn't be so bad for Braun's contract, based on how it's going to cost the Nuggets for five years moving forward.
The Nuggets don't have trade assets to attach except for 2026
The Nuggets haven't been very active so far, with only some grumblings about possibly trading up in the draft one day, followed by a rumor of attaching Zeke Nnaji to their first-round pick to get out from under Nnaji's final year and player option while trading out of the first round the next. They're potentially being active with the lone trade asset that's worth a flyer because the Nuggets lack control of all of their future first-round picks. The Nuggets are in a class of their own at the bottom of the draft future charts.
Hopefully, the Nuggets are willing to pay some fines to at least operate in the luxury tax zone or in the first apron. It's hard to imagine the Nuggets as a contender in 2026-27 if they just deal off Johnson and Braun for a couple of future draft picks.
The Nuggets could at least try to work something like a Johnson or Braun for Isaiah Stewart type of deal to save a few million and get a solid, perfect defensive replacement in return.
The Nuggets' owners need to be willing to pay the fines
But that involves paying the additional fines by the ownership group for violating the luxury tax as a repeat offender, and those fines can be steep. Plus, it would require multiple moves, and moving Braun could be more difficult than moving Johnson on his expiring contract.
But as we all know, the fines should be paid as part of the Nikola Jokic tax. Keep the best team you can around him while the championship window may still be open, because the window is rapidly starting to close.
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