It's not often that a window for title contention opens for any team in the NBA. Just ask the early 2010s Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that never won a championship despite boasting an embarrassment of riches, and the recent iteration of the Brooklyn Nets, whose vaunted Big 3 only played in 16 games together before everything went up in smoke. Thus, the Denver Nuggets, despite having the look of a bonafide title contender, should not rest on their laurels.
As good a team might be in the NBA, there is always room to get better. If a team does not have as much talent as the Golden State Warriors did back when they had Kevin Durant, then there will always be holes to shore up, facets of the game they need to bolster. And the Nuggets, despite playing elite basketball as of late, should benefit a ton from reinforcing their defense that, while currently ranked 14th in terms of defensive rating, has shown a tendency to be leaky at times.
And to the Nuggets' credit, they appear cognizant of the fact that they could, indeed, stand to bolster their championship odds by adding an elite defender to their ranks. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Aaron Gordon, and Bruce Brown are solid defenders, but for the Nuggets to overcome the Western Conference gauntlet, they will need an All-Defensive team-caliber talent to anchor their defense.
Thus, whether by virtue of adding a lockdown perimeter defender or a rim protector who would allow the Nuggets to not suffer that big of a drop-off whenever Nikola Jokic is on the bench, the Nuggets should maximize their title contending window and swing a trade. Here's the last minute deal the Nuggets should pull off with the NBA trade deadline inching ever so closely.
Nuggets trade for Alex Caruso
Alex Caruso was once a meme player, someone whom Los Angeles Lakers fans joked about everytime he was on the court. However, Caruso has shown that he is not just comic relief. During the 2019-20 season, Caruso forever endeared himself to the Lakers faithful by playing hard-nosed defense, helping shape the Lakers' lockdown defensive identity en route to their run to the 2020 NBA championship in the bubble.
Even the Nuggets know firsthand just how impactful the Bald Eagle can be after the Lakers defeated them in five games during the 2020 Western Conference Finals.
There's a reason why plenty of fans decried the Lakers' decision to let Alex Caruso go in 2021, deciding to pay Talen Horton-Tucker instead. Caruso may not be the most impactful player in a vacuum, given his glaring offensive limitations, but the Lakers have still sorely missed his elite defense, energy, and hustle.
Now with the Chicago Bulls, Caruso played a huge role in their rise as a legitimate playoff team last year. In a team with plenty of guys who command the ball, such as DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, and Nikola Vucevic, acquiring players who have mastered the little things that contribute to winning was a must. And Caruso was able to provide that even as he suffered through some injury woes.
But now, the Bulls are on shaky ground, and they appear to be going nowhere fast as a franchise. There have even been rumors of locker room discord between their two main stars, and it's unlikely for a team to overcome those kinds of friction especially when the two butting heads aren't as talented as Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal were.
Thus, it only makes sense for the Bulls to trade away Alex Caruso, who would most certainly draw a ton of interest on the market. Caruso won't come cheap – the Bulls are asking for at least two first-round picks in exchange for the defensive-minded guard.
However, the Nuggets could try and negotiate with the Bulls; instead of trading away two first-round picks, they would trade away explosive scoring guard Bones Hyland in lieu of one first-round pick. The Nuggets could then absorb Caruso's contract via the trade exception they created when they dealt Monte Morris to the Washington Wizards this past offseason.
Hyland has proven himself to be a valuable insurance policy whenever Jamal Murray sits out due to injury management. However, the Nuggets have made the young guard available for trade due to his lack of defensive impact and reported discontent with his lack of minutes. As a result, Hyland has not played the Nuggets' past four games despite being healthy enough to do so.
Simply put, the Nuggets brass has soured upon Bones Hyland. But he could be exactly the kind of buy-low candidate the Bulls could afford to take on, given the uncertainty in their point guard situation what with Lonzo Ball's confounding injury problems.
This makes the Nuggets and Bulls a hand-and-glove fit with regards to a potential trade, and for the Nuggets' sake, they will find it difficult to trade for someone who could be more impactful on defense than Alex Caruso.
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