Nuggets start slow, trade Jokic to Jazz
Most will hate this, but if I were a fan of either team, I’d be ok with it.
After a slow start, Denver realizes the rest of Jokic’s prime years aren’t near enough in the West bc of their cap issues. The Jazz, and Peterson, look great, so Ainge takes a massive swing.
Denver gets 3 valuable unprotected 1sts, a ton of upside in Ace and a valuable piece in Lauri. The Lauri/A Gordon fit isn’t great, so one of them could bring back a nice haul, although they don’t control next years 1st so mini-tanking isn’t ideal. Getting off Brauns deal is huge, Brice is an NBA player and Cody is a lotto ticket. This beats being a 6 seed the next few years.
If Peterson and George are thriving in the backcourt, adding Jokic to Jaren Jackson up front makes them instant contenders.
Braun is a terrible contract, but he actually fits well with Jokic getting him open looks and can help fill the 3 spot. Utah still has the draft capital and cap flexibility to help with the 3 spot and bench.