Nuggets go all-in
Magic send: James Ennis III, Evan Fournier, Aaron Gordon
Nuggets send: JaMychal Green, R.J. Hampton, Gary Harris, Zeke Nnaji, 2 future 1st round picks
Nikola Jokic is ready to win ready now; he’s currently one of the favorites to win MVP after the injuries to Joel Embiid and LeBron James and is in the midst of a historically (offensive) dominant season. Unfortunately, the rest of his team hasn’t consistently brought it. The Nuggets season has been marred by injuries, health and safety protocol absences, some strange no-shows, and an imbalanced roster.
Denver adds an athletic wing in Aaron Gordon to fill the Jerami Grant spot, as well as another shot-creator who should play well off Jokic with Evan Fournier. This also allows Will Barton to slide into a sixth-man role. Losing Gary Harris, one of the “founding fathers” of the program is difficult, but health and shooting concerns torpedoed his value (makes $20.9 million in 2021-22), though his three-ball was starting to come around before the recent injuries.
Imagine a nine-man playoff rotation of: Jokic, Jamal Murray, Fournier, Gordon, Michael Porter Jr., Monte Morris, Barton, Paul Millsap, and one of Facundo Campazzo/P.J. Dozier/James Ennis III. Pretty scary.
Orlando finally turns the page on this era of Magic basketball, which culminated in Game 1 victories over Toronto and Milwaukee in back-to-back seasons. Hampton and Nnaji – both just 20 years old – add to this team’s athletic young core, even if they aren’t high-end prospects. The two picks could be extremely valuable down the road.