The Denver Nuggets add a dynamic guard
If the offseason rumors were accurate that the Portland Trail Blazers wanted to trade Anfernee Simons in an attempt to support their younger core, perhaps there is a deal that makes sense for the Denver Nuggets here. In this deal, the Nuggets would send Michael Porter Jr. to the Blazers in exchange for Simons, Matisse Thybulle, Tounami Camara, and a future first-round pick. Why would Portland make this move? Well, they'd move on from Simons (which they reportedly want to do) while adding a proven start talent in MPJ.
The Nuggets could get their new answer to their starting shooting guard concerns with Simons and would add a strong defensive wing presence in Thybulle along with a useful young rotation piece with some upside in Camara. Adding a first-round pick from a team with an uncertain future is an underrated strong part of the deal as well. By adding a score-first starting two-guard, the Nuggets would help take some pressure off the shoulders of both Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, while giving a boost to their bench (by allowing Christian Braun to return to a reserve role).
If the Nuggets are looking for a move that would shift their entire supporting cast around Jokic, this could be a move that accomplishes that. Of course, this is a move that would also suggest that the team's biggest issue is their lack of a consistent starting two-guard. And to be quite honest, I'm not sure if that's the team's biggest problem. But maybe the front office does believe that to be the case.
The Blazers could get a jump-start in their rebuild, which they seemed to have lacked recently, or could elect to trade MPJ down the line. Either way, the Blazers would get good value for Simons and would have much of the same flexibility moving forward. This may not seem like a perfect deal on paper for either side but it could go a long way in solving some of the issues that both teams seem to have at the moment.