We suggest one trade the LA Clippers could make with the Denver Nuggets.
We continue our quest to find one trade for the LA Clippers to make with every team in the NBA and kick-off the Northwest Division today with the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets currently have a record of 43-22 and hold third place in the Western Conference, a game and a half behind the Clippers in the standings.
Finding a trade that works between two teams so close in the standings, both trying to compete now and keep their rosters mostly intact for the near future proved a bit difficult. Neither teams have major holes that they need to fill. No obvious swaps that mutually benefit both teams are apparent.
So we decided to suggest a trade for novelty purposes.
Why we suggest this trade for the LA Clippers:
Once again, we include Kabengele as an outgoing player in our hypothetical trade. This time, it’s not as much for the young big man’s on-the-court athletic promise, but more for the fact that he is the nephew of former Nuggets great Dikembe Mutombo.
Yes, our trade suggestion mostly stems from the fact the teams would be swapping the nephew of Mutombo for the son of Manute Bol.
Bol Bol is a legitimate prospect in his own right, with some worrisome injury concerns. The seven-foot-two inch center was drafted 44th overall in the 2019 NBA Draft by the Miami Heat and was traded to the Nuggets in exchange for cash and a 2022 second-round pick.
The Clippers would most likely need to throw in some cash and future draft considerations to round out the trade, as they’d need to take back Torrey Craig to make the money work now.
Bol has not yet played any NBA minutes, being sidelined after having surgery to repair his left foot. He played in just nine games in his freshman season at Oregon before a stress fracture ended his college career.
Acquiring Bol does come with injury risks but the upside is obvious. Bol sports surprising speed and coordination for a player his size, boasts a nine-foot-seven-inch standing reach, and his three-point-shooting skills make him a legit threat to stretch the floor.
Would the Nuggets do it?
The key would come down to the further compensation the Clippers would be able to offer them. Bol is a great potential prospect, with legitimate injury concerns. Kabengele also has promise and potential and bringing in the nephew of a former franchise great would not just make for a nice story, but give them an athletic young center to add to their already deep roster.
Read the rest of our “One Trade with every Team” series here:
Pacific Division: Lakers, Warriors, Kings, Suns
Northwest Division: Nuggets, Jazz, Thunder, Blazers, Timberwolves
Southwest Division: Rockets, Mavericks, Grizzlies, Pelicans, Spurs
Atlantic Division: Raptors, Celtics, 76ers, Nets, Knicks
Central Division: Bucks, Pacers, Bulls, Pistons, Cavaliers
Southeast Division: Heat, Magic, Wizards, Hornets, Hawks