Nuggets’ dream NBA trade deadline scenario in 2026 as Nikola Jokic recovers

In anticipation of the 2025-26 season Denver Nuggets were among the teams touted as a worthy challenger to the Oklahoma City Thunder for the NBA championship. They met with excitement heading into the season, but have had to weather several storms over the past few months, none more devastating than Nikola Jokić’s knee injury it keeps him out for almost a month.

The Nuggets can take at least some positives amid Jokic’s absence. Peyton Watson has emerged as a legitimate high-level scoring threat, while JAmal Murray seems to be on the right track for his first All-Star appearance with the way he kept Denver singing amid the absence of the team’s best player.

The trade deadline is approaching, it is the Nuggets are unlikely to be active in the trading market, if only because they lack the funds to do any business that moves the needle. However, they can dream whatever they want. And in their dreams, one player must be at the top of their wish list — after all, anything can come true in one’s imagination.

In this article, we’ll discuss the absolute no-holds-barred dream scenario for the Nuggets, as well as the more realistic dream scenario they must pursue.

Nuggets’ absolute dream scenario: Get Trey Murphy III from the Pelicans

The Pelicans, according to reports, are already out and set the price too high for Murphy on the trading market. They will require multiple first-round picks, having opted to acquire a package similar to what the Memphis Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets received for Desmond Bain and Mikal Bridges, respectively.

All this does not rule out the Nuggets potential pursuit of Murphy. But it’s clear how much of a fan head coach David Adelman is of the 25-year-old winger. In the Nuggets’ last matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans, Murphy scored 31 points in the loss, leading to Adelman to invite the Eastern Conference team to trade for him in order to face him only twice in one season.

Murphy would make an already dangerous Nuggets team much more difficult to deal with. 76.6 percent of Murphy’s buckets were assisted, and he was able to play alongside big playmakers like Derrick Quinn and Zion Williamson. It is interesting to imagine how much better he would play in the attack under the leadership of Jokić.

The 25-year-old Murphy is a more athletic threat than Michael Porter Jr., making him a more dangerous presence around the basket as well. Now, he doesn’t have as bold a shooting diet as Porter, but he’s more versatile, scoring-wise, so he could end up making the Nuggets the undisputed title favorite.

The prospect of upgrading from Christian Brown and Cam Johnson to someone like Murphy is so enticing that the Nuggets front office must be dreaming of acquiring the Pelicans’ rising star.

Brownian expansion is set to strike the following season, and this year he has not been good at all, perhaps due to the fact that he has been dealing with persistent ankle problems all season. Johnson, who is currently sidelined with a knee injury, was uninspiring in his first season in Denver, as he was a clear drop from Porter.

Murphy combines Brown’s athleticism and transition prowess, as well as Johnson’s prowess from beyond the arc, and he’s poised to make a similar amount of money as the former.

However, the Nuggets they don’t have much in the manner of exchangeable future first-round picks. They traded their 2027 first-rounder to the Oklahoma City Thunder for a series of draft picks, one of which became Watson. Their 2029 first-round pick is also owned by the Thunder, and the terms involved in dealing the pick to OKC make it very difficult for Denver to even trade the 2028 and 2030 picks.

Trading the pick away from the Nuggets isn’t even much value, as Denver could still be a better team than New Orleans through 2028 and 2030. Suffice it to say, The Nuggets are not a realistic destination anything for Murphy, and the best package they put together won’t be enough to match what teams like the Detroit Pistons, Toronto Raptors, or even the Golden State Warriors can offer the Pelicans for the 25-year-old wing.

Maybe in another life.

Nuggets’ realistic trade deadline scenario: Just bring everyone back healthy

It’s a bit of a twist that in a year when the Nuggets built a pretty deep roster around Jokic and Murray, they experienced a flood of injury problems. Jokić is only a few missed games away from being disqualified from winning the MVP. Aaron Gordon has work to do a hamstring problem, which is a concern because soft tissue injuries require so much rest and recovery. Even Murray struggled with a hamstring strain.

In addition to injury issues to their top three guys, the Nuggets have seen Brown and Johnson, their starting wing duo, miss significant time with ankle and knee issues. Even Jonas Valanciunas, the man who was supposed to feast in Jokic’s absence, dealt with a calf ailment from which he only recently recovered.

But amid all those problems, the Nuggets have held strong, sitting in the top three in the Western Conference. That’s nothing to scoff at given how competitive things are in the west. If this were any other iteration of the Nuggets, they would have collapsed without Jokic. But the roster boost paid dividends, and so did the emergence of youth such as Watson, Jalen Pickett, Spencer Jones and Zeke Nnaji.

Moving forward, all the Nuggets need to do is get their key guys back on track. Getting the Browns back on track after an incredible 2024-25 season should be a priority. It’s imperative to make sure Gordon and Murray don’t suffer long-term hamstring problems. And getting Jokic back is like getting a superstar at the trade deadline for free. The Nuggets have the luxury of not being able to make any moves and still remain one of the best teams in the NBA as is.