Kenneth Faried #35 of the Denver Nuggets dunks the ball against the Dallas Mavericks at Pepsi Center on March 6, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo : Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)
The NBA trade rumors continue and one team that is quickly rising up the rumor mill is the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets has been one of the more underrated teams in terms of tradable assets, often lost in the shadow of the Boston Celtics. While Boston does have more picks, the Nuggets have more veteran players that teams could covet. It was only a matter of time before ESPN top NBA scribe Zach Lowe caught wind of them in his podcast (h/t Fansided).
"I would say the team I heard the most about in terms of they still might have moves up their sleeve - other than Boston - in Vegas is Denver. And not just 'Denver is trying to get off [Kenneth] Faried', which I think they are, but if they have to move a decent wing to get off Faried and get something good in return. They've got a lot of wings now; young ones, mid-career ones, take your pick. They just had a lot of ideas in the fire."
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia 76ers is also another team eager to make a deal, but their two biggest trade chips have yet to fetch them more useful talent. In the Sports Illustrated blog The Sixer Sense, writer Josh Wilson had a steep price for what he believed was a Nuggets' target, Nerlens Noel.
"The only way I could see a deal possibly coming out here is if the Nuggets somehow want to give up young point guards Emmanuel Mudiay or Jamal Murray for Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel," Wilson declared.
Between the two Sixers centers, Noel would be a better fit next to Nikola Jokic so it seems more plausible to target him.
Wilson continued: "But to be honest, I don't think either side really likes that deal. The Sixers are set with point guards for this season, and Colangelo really wants to get a huge value for Okafor or Noel."
It should be noted that Fansided is a general NBA blog and The Sixers Sense is a Philadelphia 76ers team blog. Although Mudiay did not set the league on fire, he is still the Nuggets' bet as point guard of the future. They would not trade him for simply an additional center.
Wilson's point of view was Sixer-centric and brushes aside the fact that the Sixers have tried and failed to trade either of the two centers. The Nuggets could make the Faried counter-offer and even if the Sixers would rather get a backcourt player, Faried would better complement the debuting Joel Embiid better than Noel or Okafor could.
Another thing to consider is how "the Sixers are set with point guards." Looking at their roster, most pundits would disagree with that, unless Ben Simmons is considered a point guard.
The Nuggets will not give up Mudiay for either center and would only give up Faried. All it would take for the deal to get done is for the Sixers to gain a better perspective on their actual position.
