The Denver Nuggets, an aging squad—old men at the club still trying to take home women—trading the only young, talented, athletic wing on their roster to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a first-round pick in the 2030s, next decade.
Nuggets Receive:
- Cleveland 2031 1st round pick
- Sacramento 2032 2nd round picl
Cavaliers Receive:
- Peyton Watson
- Cam Whitmore
Clippers Receive:
- Max Strus
Wizards Receive:
- Tre Mann
- Clippers 2027 2nd round pick
Hornets Receive:
- Dennis Schroder
Everybody eats. The NBA salary cap so cooked, teams run out of dollars quick—the restricted free agents and leftovers trapped in 9-team sign-and-trades to purgatory.
Denver lost to a Minnesota Timberwolves team one injury away from hosting tryouts at the local high school gymnasium for reserves between playoff games.
Since winning the 2023 NBA Title—can’t take that away from them, that’s the goal—each season ends in reruns. Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray and fill-in-the-blank role player limping, their newly wealthy “3-and-D” wing drowning, Nikola Jokic vs. Everyone. Everyone winning 3 straight years now.
Peyton Watson’s 2025-26, the best of his career—14.6 points, 4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 41% from 3 on a career-high 3.6 attempts a game. But in having his best season, he outpriced the Nuggets. Denver, unable to get other NBA teams to buy the expensive junk at their yard sale, lost all the electricity in their lineup—replacing it with a pick 5 years from now.
I hope Nikola Jokic is getting his cardio in.
Trade Grades
Nuggets Grade: A-
At the end of the 2030-31 NBA season, I doubt Donovan Mitchell will even be on the Cleveland Cavaliers. The rebuild may be in full effect. This 2031 first pick is a commodity. It could help Denver rebuild post-Jokic—but more likely, this is a tool for this season’s trade deadline. Some team no one expected to suck, will suck, wave the white flag, and start collecting assets. This pick could get them someone like Dillon Brooks if the Phoenix Suns are ass—a strong possibility.
Cavaliers Grade: A-
Cavs about $28m under the 2nd apron, now expected to bring back James Harden—who’s hoping to eat every last bite of that surplus $28m surplus.
Peyton Watson unlimited rim roll clutch unlocked. Harden, robbed of whatever remaining verticality left, will be relying entirely on Watson, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley to finish at the rim for him. They’re all overqualified for the position.
Over the course of an 82-game season, Cleveland combing through a manila folder full of easy points. It’s too lit.
Peyton Watson is better than Isaac Okoro and DeAndre Hunter and Keon Ellis and all them.
The playoffs? Eh.
Max Strus the only Cavs guard interested in playing the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals. James Harden picks and chooses which games in a 7-game series he intends to participate in, Donovan Mitchell scoring in random, uncoordinated bursts, then passing to Harden, watching with hands on his knees, catching his breath.
Maybe Peyton Watson is in the gym right now getting his handle Shammgod levels.
Matchups determine outcomes. Perhaps Peyton Watson is enough for Cleveland to finally return to the NBA Finals without LeBron.
Again, and I cannot stress this enough, he is better than Isaac fucking Okoro.
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