Report: Nuggets could pitch LeBron James on idea of one-year deal

The Denver Nuggets are trying to put themselves in a position to contend in the Western Conference next season, and they are aiming as high as possible in free agency in order to accomplish that goal.

Now that they have signed Nikola Jokic and Will Barton to extensions, the Nuggets are reportedly planning to “aggressively pursue” a meeting with LeBron. Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated says they could try to sell James on the idea of giving them a shot for one season.

With Jokic and Barton on board, the Denver Nuggets will turn their attention to one more free agent: LeBron James. The Nuggets have been in contact with James's agent and will aggressively pursue a meeting.

— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixYS) July 1, 2018

The Nuggets know it's a long shot, but Denver's ultra aggressive front office wants a shot at selling James on a Jokic/Murray/Barton teammate trio–even if it's just for one year.

— Chris Mannix (@ChrisMannixYS) July 1, 2018

While that’s awfully ambitious of Denver’s front office, the odds of it happening are about as slim as it gets. Jamal Murray, Jokic and Barton give the Nuggets a solid core of young players, but it would make no sense for LeBron to sign with them over a team like the Los Angeles Lakers.

There have been indications that LeBron is going to make a decision sooner rather than later, and no one expects a surprise team like the Nuggets to be a factor.

Nuggets will reportedly change branding, uniforms this offseason

It has been five years since the Denver Nuggets reached the postseason and nearly a decade since they won a playoff series, so now seems like as good of a time as any to undergo a branding change.

According to T.J. McBride of Mile High Sports, the Nuggets are planning to do just that. The team will unveil new branding and uniforms at some point prior to the 2018-19 season.

Sources have confirmed to @MileHighSports that the Denver Nuggets will be changing their branding and uniforms sometime this offseason. By next year you can expect a near overhaul of the team's current branding.

— T.J. McBride (@TJMcBrideNBA) May 31, 2018

The Nuggets themselves have been very tight lipped about this change and I have not been able to confirm any differences that there may or may not be.

Regardless, the Nuggets branding and uniforms will be looking different next season.

— T.J. McBride (@TJMcBrideNBA) May 31, 2018

Previous rumors indicated that the Nuggets may be going back to the colors they wore during the 1990s. That would mean the end of the powder blue era that Denver introduced in the 2000s.

We have already seen some significant changes to NBA uniforms over the past year, and the Nuggets are continuing that trend.

Nuggets reportedly trade Emmanuel Mudiay to Knicks

The Denver Nuggets have reportedly traded Emmanuel Mudiay to the New York Knicks as part of a three-team trade.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, Mudiay is heading to the Knicks with fellow point guard Devin Harris going to Denver. The third team, the Dallas Mavericks, are getting Doug McDermott.

Denver is trading Emmanuel Mudiay to New York, league sources tell ESPN.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 8, 2018

Denver, New York and Dallas agreed on a three-way deal, league sources tell ESPN. Mudiay to Knicks; Devin Harris to Denver and Doug McDermott to Dallas.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) February 8, 2018

The Nuggets will also get a future second-round pick in the deal, according to Woj.

Mudiay, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2015 draft, had been discussed as a possible piece of a trade that would bring Boston Celtics point guard Marcus Smart to the Nuggets, but that obviously never materialized.

Report: Nuggets have explored Marcus Smart trade

The Denver Nuggets have reportedly looked into acquiring Marcus Smart from the Boston Celtics.

According to Marc Stein of the New York Times, the Nuggets have made point guard Emmanuel Mudiay available in a potential Smart trade, but the Celtics would prefer a first-round pick.

Denver is among the teams that has explored Marcus Smart trade scenarios with Boston, according to league sources. Emmanuel Mudiay has been made available, sources say, but the Celts covet a first-round pick for Smart

— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 5, 2018

Smart is most certainly available, and is clearly drawing a lot of interest. It turns out his recent temper tantrum hasn’t done much to hinder his trade value. Boston seems determined to get a draft pick out of this, though, and it remains to be seen if anyone is willing to meet that asking price.

Contender or Pretender: Are these 8 NBA teams for real?

Nothing really makes sense in our world any more. Rookies are playing like ten-year pros, Arthur memes are taking over the planet, and the president is feuding with LaVar Ball. In trying times like these, we need some real and concrete answers about what’s fact and what’s fiction, so let’s start by asking the only question that matters about eight NBA teams that have outperformed expectations to this point of the season: contender or pretender?

Detroit Pistons
Record: 11-5
The Verdict: PRETENDER

It’s difficult to believe going from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to Avery Bradley and getting slight improvements from the rest of the roster is a viable long-term winning strategy, and that’s probably because it isn’t. As good as Detroit has been, their first 16 games have felt incredibly fluky. Eight of their wins have come by single-digits, and they improved their three-point percentage by over five points from last season despite returning largely the same core. The NBA is fun when bigs like Andre Drummond are rampaging through the competition and dudes like Reggie Jackson and Ish Smith are running circles around everybody. But the Pistons’ own fun may be coming to an end soon.

Philadelphia 76ers
Record: 8-7
The Verdict: CONTENDER

Joel Embiid is better than any horror film out there and is playing like a top-ten guy in the league right now. His brilliance has been largely overshadowing the 18-9-8 stat line that fellow ’90s baby Ben Simmons has been hoisting up. The world is also awakening to how good Robert Covington is at the sport of basketball. JJ Redick is looking like one of the more underrated signings of the summer. Indeed, the Sixers are putting up 109 points per game at the NBA’s fourth-fastest pace, and Markelle Fultz (you know, the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft) is still hurt. It’s Process forever and I will not hear otherwise.

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10 teams that improved the most this NBA offseason

Though there was no single Kevin-Durant-to-Golden-State-sized splash in the NBA this offseason, teams made move after move to jockey with the Warriors in an attempt to interrupt their reign of terror.

The Rockets took a leap of faith and traded the farm for an aging Chris Paul. The Celtics used their cap space to reunite Gordon Hayward with Brad Stevens, then got rid of an asset in Avery Bradley to balance their checkbook. The Timberwolves suddenly became a legitimate Western Conference contender by ripping off the Bulls.

There were so many moves, in fact — so many trades and so many signings — that, now that the league’s transaction churn and burn has finally calmed, it’s hard to believe all that actually happened. To sum it up:

We’re going to see a lot of familiar faces in new jerseys come this fall (the preseason begins Sept. 30). But which of those players will make the biggest impact, and which teams will look the most improved? Which 2017-18 NBA squad will make the biggest leap?

It’s too early to know, of course, but below is my take on the 10 NBA teams that improved the most this offseason.

10. Denver Nuggets

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Report: Pacers turned down Cavs’ trade proposal for Paul George, could revisit

The Indiana Pacers have reportedly turned down at least one trade proposal from the Cleveland Cavaliers involving Paul George, but the two sides could revisit a deal down the road.

A report from ESPN over the weekend indicated that the Cavs and Pacers had discussions about a three-team trade with the Denver Nuggets that also involved Kevin Love. According to Sam Amico of FOX Sports, Indiana said no.

#Pacers denied #Cavs' and #Nuggets' hopes of 3-team deal centered on Paul George and Kevin Love. Teams may revisit. #NBA

— Sam Amico (@AmicoHoops) June 26, 2017

Now that the draft has come and gone, the Pacers don’t need to be in any rush to deal George. They have openly stated that they will still look to trade him, as the 27-year-old informed the team he is not going to sign an extension next summer. However, there’s no reason Indiana can’t take its time and shop around for the best deal.

At least one other team that — unlike the Cavs — has plenty of draft capital is interested in acquiring George, and that team reportedly believes George would agree to an extension. While it’s obvious George has no future in Indiana, the Pacers can still try their best to start a bidding war.