The Denver Nuggets reportedly are trying to add a "star player" before the NBA trade deadline but, if that looks unlikely to happen, will have a fire sale of veterans such as Wilson Chandler and Arron Afflalo. One player the Nuggets are still linked to is Brooklyn Nets center Brook Lopez, whom Denver has tried to trade for at least two times already.
Denver is expected to be busy in the two weeks leading up to the trade deadline. According to Basketball Insiders' Alex Kennedy, the plan of Nuggets general manager Tim Connelly is black-and-white: try to trade for a big-name player, and if that looks unlikely to happen, trade off veteran players to land significant assets.
Per Kennedy:
"Rival executives say that the Nuggets would love to add a star player between now and the deadline. They were linked to Brook Lopez of the Brooklyn Nets recently and they'd be open to packaging some of their assets together if it allowed them to land a star-caliber player. ...
"While landing a star player seems to be a priority for Denver, that's obviously easier said than done. If they can't bring in a top-notch player that they can build around, league sources say Denver seems willing to trade off some of their veteran pieces for first-round picks."
Although Connelly didn't go into detail, he did tell the Denver Post his front office is being "very, very aggressive right now."
Denver has been linked to Lopez for some time and has tried at least two times before to trade for him.
If Denver can't pull off a trade in time, Chandler and Afflalo are the two likeliest Nuggets to be traded before the deadline passes. Chandler reportedly has drawn interest from the Portland Trail Blazers and the Los Angeles Clippers, with Denver's asking for him reportedly a future first-round draft pick. Afflalo has drawn interested from teams such as the Miami Heat, the Charlotte Hornets and the Clippers.
Other players Denver may look to move include JaVale McGee, Randy Foye, Jameer Nelson and J.J. Hickson.
The trade deadline is on Feb. 19.
