JDR720 wrote:Charlotte trades: Nick Richards, Vasa Micic and 2nd round pick (maybe Denver's own)
Denver trades: Nnaji, Saric, and a lightly protected 1st.
Charlotte upgrades assets, Denver upgrades depth.
I like the premise of this trade very much, however I am a bit unsure if the picks Denver owe in the future makes it unlikely for the teams to come to agreement on the terms of the future picks. Denver's first available 1st is 2031, assuming the picks they owe in 2025, 2027, 2029 all convey in the first possible year, (all are top 5 protected). Denver does not hold its own 2031 second, so there can be no back-up to the pick - if it lands in the protected range (or any of the priviously traded picks does), then it cannot convey. For Charlotte I think the pick has to be top 3 protected or less, the money they take on is bad and taking it on for nothing makes no sense. If the pick is too highly protected then Denver can (if bad by 2031) tank to keep it, and it will not convey.
As far as the trade goes I really like how it solves a lot of Denver's issues. Replacing Saric and DeAndre Jordan's minutes with Nick Richards', and replacing Westbrook with Micic should help Denver. A lot of addition by subraction as a lot of the worst +/- guys on Denver are either going out in the trade or are being replaced by the pieces coming in. Richards and Micic are not ideal, but they are better than what Denver has.
One idea coming out of the above could be to look for another team that could be a better match. Maybe there is a team with a center and guard that would fit also that would be a better trade partner. Maybe a better team or someone holding multible firsts where pick-swap with Denver could be more valuable in 2026/2028/2030?