NBA Trade Rumors: The Kevin Love conundrum and possible solutions
By Jacob Gries
Denver Nuggets
On its face, pairing Love with Nikola Jokic doesn’t seem like a great idea, as their best traits are mostly redundant. They’re both exquisite passers (though Jokic is historically great), capable of functioning as the fulcrum of any offensive system, who also rebounds extremely well for their position.
But, if their moves the last few years are any indication, the Denver Nuggets seem intent on offering Jokic as much help on the defensive end as humanly possible, which doesn’t bode well for a potential Love-Jokic pairing. But, with the league tilting more and more toward the offensive end, these fit issues seem rather trivial, and worth sacrificing in the name of a potentially transcendent offense with Jokic at the controls, flanked by Love and Jamal Murray.
Plus, much like Portland, NBA players aren’t exactly clamoring to sign with this team during free agency. Three summers ago, they inked their biggest free agent in the history of the franchise – a slightly past-his-prime Paul Millsap, whose contract comes off their books this year. Love fits nicely into that vacated cap space while offering the Nuggets a younger, more offensively inclined replacement.