The Nuggets are here in the early stages of the NBA’s offseason, and they’re not exactly an organization in panic mode. They were the No. 2 seed in the West last season following their NBA championship in 2023, and lost in a seven-game series against a very good Timberwolves team that was specifically designed to unseat them. And yet, a major Nuggets trade appears very much necessary in the coming weeks.
That’s because, while there is no panic in terms of roster construction and talent, there is some panic over the team’s payroll construction, which is slated to put the Nuggets over the dreaded second apron of the NBA’s luxury tax, where penalties and restrictions will freeze the team’s ability to improve going forward.
The Nuggets have a few problems that are intertwined. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope could opt out and seek a new deal in free agency, at a bigger salary than the $15.4 million he is scheduled to make. If he wants a raise, it’s almost impossible for the Nuggets to keep him. And the team is overpaying Michael Porter Jr., who is entering the third year of a five-year, $180 million contract.
The Nuggets could simply let KCP walk and move Christian Braun into the starting five, but with Braun’s history of playoff struggles, that is an iffy prospect.
That’s where the possibility of a Michael Porter Jr. trade comes in.
Nuggets Could Get 2 New Starters in Michael Porter Jr. Trade Package
Ideally, the Nuggets could deal away Porter Jr. and get a replacement small forward plus another potential starter at shooting guard. If Denver is willing to pull of a blockbuster trade with another West contender (well, sorta contender), the Warriors could be the perfect spot for a deal.
Nuggets get: SF Andrew Wiggins, SG Moses Moody, future first-round draft pick
Warriors get: SF Michael Porter Jr.
The deal would allow the Nuggets to deal away Porter and get a very good two-way player—albeit coming off a poor year—in his place in Wiggins, who has a championship to his credit. Just as important, it would send Moody, who has steadily improved for three seasons and would be the favorite to replace Caldwell-Pope, assuming he leaves.
Moody averaged 8.1 points last season on 46.2% shooting and 36.0% 3-point shooting. The numbers are not eye-popping, but he should thrive in a clear starting role. The Warriors suppressed him too much behind Klay Thompson—in 25 games in which Moody got 20 minutes or more, he averaged 11.8 on 47.9% shooting and 42.2% 3-point shooting.
NBA Trades Could Be Fueled by ‘Desperate’ Teams This Summer
The Nuggets would take those numbers in place of Caldwell-Pope. The question would be a bounce-back year from Wiggins, who had the worst season of his NBA career in 2023-24. He averaged a career-low 13.2 points on 45.3% shooting, and made 35.8% of his 3-pointers.
Wiggins did play better as the year went on, though, and Wiggins is only 29. He is two years removed from an All-Star spot and averaged 17.1 points in 2022-23. Wiggins has $84 million left on his four-year, $109 million contract.
An NBA executive has the Warriors as desperate to make a roster change as the Nuggets are to make a payroll change. The Warriors and Nuggets would be strange bedfellows, but they could help address each other’s desperation.
“(Wiggins) is the big chip (the Warriors) have to play,” one NBA executive told Heavy Sports. “They looked at trading him in (February) at the deadline but there was not anything there for them, nothing serious. But it is a foregone conclusion they’re going to look to do it again. They will have to put in young pieces, but he’s their only real path to retooling that roster.”
And the exec went on to describe potential Wiggins suitors.
“There will be desperate teams out there,” the exec said with a laugh. “The (luxury-tax) second apron is coming, there were a lot of injuries, there are a lot of contenders who were really, really disappointed this year.”
Sounds a bit like the Nuggets, no?
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Nuggets ‘Desperate’ Trade Proposal Flips MPJ for Struggling $109 Million Star