OsuCavsfan103 wrote:mhd wrote:Denver and Portland are clearly destinations as rentals:
Denver can trade: 13+Mudiay+Chandler (who can be flipped)
Portland can trade any combo of contracts+their picks.
I can see Denver doing a trade even for a rental considering how well they have drafted. Losing Chandler, Mudiay, and the 13th for a rental isn't the worst thing in the world. Plus, what if Paul signs there?
PG: CP3/Murray/Nelson
SG: Harris/Murray
SF: PG13/Barton
PF: Gallo/Faried/Hernangomez
C: Jokic/Plumlee
Why would teams that have pretty much 0 chance of making it in the Finals out of the west consider renting him though?
Only one other team out West would be able to add PG as a rental and have a good chance against GS this year, and that is Spurs.
Cavs and Spurs are only two teams close enough for it to make sense for a rental.
Unless PG talks willingness to sign long term with teams, there is no reason for Portland or Denver to give up assets to still be walked all over by GS
Why do you think guys like Paul and last year Wade as in demand as they are have even considered Denver? Fans outside of Denver have only seen very limited amounts of Jokic, but the NBA players are figuring out that Jokic is a superstar in the making. Mike Miller who is very well liked & respected around the league has not quit gushing about Jokic for over a year and a half and he started talking about Murray that way by the end of the season. A year ago he was saying Jokic would be like a cross between Pau and Marc Gasol, he is not saying that this year, all he will say is better than them. He also is the kid brother of a couple of very good college athletes, one of which is a close friend of Darko and watched him throw away his talent, that brother watches each game 5 times with Jokic to study the game, he is reportedly and comes off as very humble. This is the kind of guy these guys want to team up with. Even if the best they can put together is George and Jokic, they can easily have max cap space next year.
It is openly talked about on Altitude radio in Denver (owned by the Kroenke's) that Millsap wanted to come home since the trade deadline, so personally I would rather the Nuggets trade for George, sign Millsap, and that will likely leave enough room for a guy like Hill or at worst Patty Mills. That is a very good and effective front court, Murray is able to run the 2nd team and take advantage of the time for him to control the ball, and Harris is the perfect SG to pair with 2 guys in the front court that like to have the ball in their hands.
Hill/ Murray/ Nelson
Harris/ Murray/ Beasley
George/ Hernangomez
Millsap/ Faried/ Arthur
Jokic/ Plumlee
It would depend heavily on being right on the young guys, and the Nuggets front office and many of us fans think they have the right ones. Now it is time to build around them and all star quality guys could mean very long term success for the Nuggets. It makes a ton of sense for guys like George who can be the long term leading scorer on a great team, Millsap who will have a young guy in Hernangomez that will likely grow into the role as he declines, and Hill who will slow down and decline as Murray learns how to properly run an offense and gets more time. Probably not next year, but within 2 years that can team develop into a true contender. We are a 2 hour flight from LA and out there 3 or 4 times a year, why walk away from that to go to a Lakers team that you are hoping can attract another franchise type talent.
