The Denver Nuggets could acquire Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins in a proposed blockbuster deal involving seven other players from both teams.
Tim Hart of Nugg Love, a fan site hosted by Sports Illustrated, explored a wild trade scenario between the Nuggets and Kings that would see Cousins reunite with Mike Malone in Mile High City. In Hart's proposed trade, the Kings would send Cousins, Kosta Koufos, Omri Casspi and Ben McLemore to Denver for Jusuf Nurkic, Kenneth Faried, Wilson Chandler and Will Barton.
The Nuggets are far from being contenders in the West and could still be considered as a rebuilding team. With plenty of young talents, the Nuggets are on track to become a winning team in the coming years, but would still need a proven star like Cousins, who could carry the team back to the postseason.
There is reason to believe Denver is the ideal destination for Cousins. Of all the coaches who handled Cousins in Sacramento, only Malone established connection with the All-Star center. A talented team with young pieces could keep Cousins happy, while the Nuggets could get the most out of Boogie with Malone as coach.
"I'm myself. Be true to yourself and I was real. In a weird way, DeMarcus and I are very, very similar - both highly competitive, can be a little emotional at times and as I told him many times, I never wanted to change DeMarcus, I just wanted him to harness all that competitive fire and use it in a positive way," Malone told SB Nation earlier this year, referring to how he connected with Cousins during their time together in Sacramento.
On the other hand, the Kings could quickly reload their roster by acquiring Barton, Chandler, Faried and Nurkic. While such move would create a logjam at the frontcourt, it is something the Kings could consider if they finally decide on moving Cousins.
The hypothetical trade scenario may never come to fruition before the February 2017 deadline, but if the Nuggets could come up with an enticing package for the Kings, Denver could finally acquire an All-Star caliber player the team has been longing for.
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