National Basketball Association

Denver Nuggets: 5 Under the Radar Trade Partners for Kenneth Faried

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Oct 12, 2016; Lincoln, NE, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) drives to the hoop against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Minnesota won 105-88. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Thorson-USA TODAY Sports

Kenneth Faried’s time with the Denver Nuggets may quickly come to an end, and here are the top 5 suitors that may be willing to snag the manimal.

As the trade rumors of Kenneth Faried being moved get louder and more public, it is fair to think about where he could go outside of the places he has been linked to.

With these rumors being prevalent for years, there could be reason that the Nuggets finally make a move to ship Kenneth Faried elsewhere. The main reason being the evolution of Jurkic, the potential front court of Jusuf Nurkic and Nikola Jokic.

Several other reasons can quickly come to mind such as the resigning of solid big man Darrell Arthur. Kenneth Faried has almost come to the point of irrelevance for the Denver Nuggets, but he still has much to give another NBA team.

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There are a lot of teams that would benefit from his ability, motor, and youth, here are the teams that can but probably wont get him.

Mar 2, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) guards Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) in the first quarter at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Lakers

Faried is one of the best rebounding big men in the game currently and the Lakers need an experienced big man on the block.

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Outside of Julius Randle and Timofey Mozgov the Lakers are being led by guards in the rebounding department. Julius Randle can easily be a three for the Lakers and have a solid starting lineup of D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson, Randle, Faried, and Mozgov.

That would be their best five rebounders on the team on the floor at one time, plus some ability to step out and shot from Faried and Mozgov. In return the Lakers could send either a pick or two for Faried or a young piece who does not fit, like Nick Young and Metta World Peace.

Faried only has three years left on his deal and could help both Randle and Brandon Ingram get better at rebounding and post play.

February 19, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) celebrates after a basket against Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) during the second quarter at Sleep Train Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Sacramento Kings

The Kings need a rebuild and want to center that around Demarcus Cousins, but it seems like the team does not want to build around him.

They have continued to draft big men over the years and try to build for after Cousins leaves. The Nuggets need a star name on the roster and Boogie, as Cousins is known, is one of the biggest as well as him needing a fresh start.

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A Boogie for Faried straight up trade may work but more likely than not the Nuggets have to give up a draft pick as well, which would be worth it. Faried would fit in nicely for the Kings as they have a over sized power forward and no clear future at the position and Faried would fix both those problems.

This would give the Nuggets their nucleus for years to come, and it would finally let the Kings enter a full scale rebuild.

Mar 15, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) and Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) battle over a loose ball during double overtime of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Nuggets defeated the Pelicans 118-111 in double overtime. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

New Orleans Pelicans

The Pelicans have a good nucleus to build around this year as they have both Anthony Davis and Buddy Heild on the squad.

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The Pelicans don’t have much else, they have some pretty big name players that haven’t done much in New Orleans, with the likes of Omar Asik, Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans among others. This team needs a veteran leader and Faried is that, they also need someone who has been to the playoffs, which Faried has done.

Along with a veteran leader, Faried and Davis played very well together four years ago in the Olympics, and any in-depth analysis could be that they might be able to recreate that success in New Orleans. This is the one reason that many thought that a trade sending Faried to New Orleans would have happen last season.

For the Pelicans, it could be worth the shot as they might be able to snag Faried for not too much. If the Nuggets ever make the call to New Orleans, it would certainly be a smart move to pick that phone up.

The Nuggs can get one of those big name guys or just grab a pick from the Pelicans, it really depends on what the Nuggets want, which I believe will be the pick.

Oct 11, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies center Marc Gasol and guards Mike Conley and Tony Allen react during a timeout in the second half against the Philadelphia 76ers at FedExForum. Memphis defeated Philadelphia 121-91. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

Memphis Grizzlies

Man do the Grizzles love big men, man do they not ave any good ones that are consistently healthy.

Faried will add to the depth of the front court for the Grizzlies and consistent health, but he can also add a new type of player to the Grizzlies rotation. Outside of Marc Gasol the Grizzlies do not have any really good, healthy, and young players on the roster, not saying Gasol is young by any means.

The only downside to the Grizzlies is that they do not have any good pieces to send back as none of their good players are of equal trade value of Faried and the picks will be consistently high.

Maybe Denver takes a late first round pick but I do not see them taking on a non-protected pick from Memphis.

November 6, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried (35) shoots the basketball against Golden State Warriors forward Harrison Barnes (40) during the third quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Nuggets 119-104. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Golden State Warriors

No one wants to see this Warriors team get better, but they easily could, as long as the cap stays steadily climbing upwards.

The Warriors lost a lot of depth on the front court to get Kevin Durant this offseason and could basically replace all of that with one simple move to get Faried. Faired is a consistent rebounder and pretty good rim defender in his own right, which is exactly what the Warriors need.

The real question is can they get Faried, Steph Curry, and Durant next year to take a pretty steep pay cut to stay together. This is the least likely of all the teams to swing this trade but would make this Warriors team nearly unbeatable.

I could see the Warriors giving up a first rounder at most for Faried but most likely a second round and a player down the rotation.

Those are all the non-obvious trades that could happen to Kenneth Faried before the season start. Although the Nuggets will probably trade him to someone else and make all of these ideas mute it is fun to think about this before the season.

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