The Denver Nuggets have been lurking around the edges of a potential Jaylen Brown trade for weeks now. Multiple league sources say the interest is real, and it’s sustained. But here’s the thing that keeps tripping up any real progress: The Celtics don’t seem to want Jamal Murray back in return.
Chris Haynes of NBA TV dropped that nugget (pun intended) during a recent appearance on The Association. He shut down the Portland rumors that had been floating around — apparently those talks are dead — and pointed a finger straight at Denver.
“I’m hearing that these talks are ongoing: the Denver Nuggets,” Haynes said. “I heard the Denver Nuggets have a really deep interest in acquiring Jaylen Brown.”
That tracks with what a lot of people around the league have been whispering. But the problem is, what do the Nuggets actually have to offer that moves Boston’s needle?
Murray is the logjam nobody wants to talk about
Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints reported that Boston hasn’t shown any real interest in a deal centered around Jamal Murray. And that makes sense when you think about it. Murray is a hell of a player when healthy, but he’s had injury issues and he’s about to get expensive. The Celtics are reportedly asking for at least four first-round picks for Brown, according to Shams Charania. That’s an enormous price tag.
So Denver is stuck. They can’t trade Nikola Jokic. That’s not happening. Murray is their next best trade chip, but if Boston isn’t biting on him, what else is there? Michael Porter Jr.? Some combination of role players and picks? That might not get it done.
Bill Simmons floated a hypothetical package on his podcast: Murray and Cam Johnson for Brown and Sam Hauser, which would save Denver about $10 million this season. That extra cap flexibility could matter for a team that’s been dancing around the luxury tax. But that’s just radio chatter. It’s not a real offer on the table.
Chris Canty also said on air that Denver has discussed this internally — they’ve kicked the tires on what it would take to cobble together picks and players to pair Brown with Jokic. But internal discussions and actual trade talks are two different things.
The bottom line on Brown to Denver
The Nuggets clearly want in on the Jaylen Brown sweepstakes. And if you’re sitting there thinking about Jokic and Brown playing together, yeah, that’s a scary thought. But the Celtics have set the bar absurdly high, and Denver’s best asset doesn’t seem to interest them. Until that changes, this is just noise. Interesting noise, but noise.
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