Ranking Nuggets' Top Trade Targets After 2024 NBA Playoff Loss

The Denver Nuggets, it turns out, will not be defending their NBA title.

A second-round matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves and their skyrocketing superstar Anthony Edwards proved more than the Nuggets could handle.

The loss stings. There's no doubt about that. The good news, though, is this feeling isn't permanent. Denver should be right back in the championship race next season, and depending on how this offseason plays out, the Nuggets just might be leading that pursuit.

They have a pricey payroll and aren't overloaded with trade assets, so their budget is a bit limited. Then again, their needs aren't enormous—reliable depth tops the wish list—so they might be able to get what they want.

The Nuggets do just about everything at a high level, but shooting threes at volume isn't one of them.

Now, that's sort of by design. When they're routinely carving up opposing defenses inside the arc, there isn't a great motivation to push beyond it. They are accurate from range (37.4 percent this season, 10th overall), they just don't stray out there too often (31.2 attempts, fewest in the league).

It's fair to wonder whether they'll seek out more spacers this summer, especially if one (or both) of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Reggie Jackson declines their player option and departs in free agency.

If the Nuggets are in the market for shooting, then Seth Curry would be a natural target. He's a career 43.1 percent shooter from distance, and he offers just enough as an inside-the-arc scorer and secondary playmaker to operate as more than a shooting specialist. He also looks entirely out of place as a 33-year-old on the rebuilding Hornets and therefore presumably wouldn't cost much to acquire.

The Nuggets have long struggled to survive the non-Nikola Jokić minutes, which isn't surprising for a couple of reasons. One, when someone who is prominently featured in the best-player-on-the-planet debates needs a breather, you're going to feel their absence. Two, the options behind him—DeAndre Jordan and Zeke Nnaji—are wholly uninspiring.

Getting Nick Richards (and his affordable $5 million salary, per Spotrac) would change that.

The athletic 7-footer could shine as an off-the-bench energizer. His skill tree doesn't have a ton of branches, but he's good at what he does. He is a rim-runner who stays active on the glass, converts interior chances and protects the paint. That just statistically translated to per-36-minutes averages of 13.3 points (on 69.1 percent shooting), 11 rebounds and 1.5 blocks, per Basketball-Reference.

If Denver wants a new backup big, Richards looks like the best one it can afford. The only thing keeping him out of the No. 1 spot is the fact he could have real trouble cracking the postseason rotation. Aaron Gordon has been the preferred backup 5 come playoff time, and the addition of Richards probably wouldn't change that.

Denver's second unit had a Bruce Brown-sized hole all season. The Nuggets were banking on one of their young players to fill that void, but no one ever provided his unique blend of defensive versatility, playmaking, hustle and sporadic scoring.

Not many players can match that skill set, but Jae'Sean Tate comes pretty close. He also happens to be relatively affordable ($7.1 million team option) and could be available after getting squeezed out of Houston's crowded wing rotation.

His three-ball has never developed (career 30.6 percent), but the Nuggets might live with his lack of spacing the same way they did with Brown. As long as Tate provides enough other intangibles, Denver can deal with that flaw. And who knows, maybe having playmakers like Jokić, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon would help that connection rate tick up closer to league-average.

Tate has a knack for perking up the players around him, and his full-throttle energy might be even more advantageous at altitude.