The Denver Nuggets have the Cleveland Cavaliers looking at a Timofey Mozgov trade following the Kevin Love deal and while no trade is imminent, the franchise may have some moves to make in the future, as they could look at an eventual trade for Ricky Rubio one day if the Timberwolves can't agree on a contract and the same goes for Kenneth Faried, as he is getting closer to free agency and could command a max deal.
According to Pro Basketball Talk, the Cavaliers are interested in trading for Mozgov to help add a defensive presence to the team and it comes on the heels of the Love trade. Andrew Wiggins was considered an above average defender and while Mozgov wouldn't be taking over for him obviously, the Cavs still want to add more in that area. Mozgov is 28 years old and he has another couple years on his deal and that makes acquiring him enticing for the Cavaliers as they try and make a championship run.
PBT is reporting that Mozgov has said that he is happy in Denver and is not asking to be traded, as he is finally showing the promise that he had in his earlier career. Last season he averaged 9.4 points and 6.4 rebounds and those were career highs and with the Nuggets rebuilding, the team is not in a rush to trade him.
Earlier in the offseason the Nuggets were mentioned as a potential option for Ricky Rubio if the Timberwolves could not come to a contract extension agreement with hi, but that is still on the horizon. Pro Basketball Talk reported that Rubio will be asking for a max contract once he has the chance and while the team wants to keep him, he could be more expendable now with Zach LaVine coming in along with Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett.
Pro Basketball Talk wrote when the deal first came up that the Cavaliers did not have the pieces to move to make the trade worth it from the Denver side. According to the site, the best thing the team can do is sent unguaranteed contracts with John Lucas, Malcolm Thomas and Erik Murphy along with a first round pick and neither side may want to do that right now. Love is now in Cleveland and while he is not an elite defender, it's something he can work on and chances are playing alongside LeBron will get him playing harder on the defensive end.
The Nuggets have Faried and they will have to either sign him or make a decision about his future and they also may look at Rubio down the line. The Cavaliers are coming into the season as championship favorites after pulling off the Kevin Love trade and if they added someone like Mozgov they would be even better suited to win. The team has already added James Jones and Mike Miller and they are trying to woo Ray Allen as well, but he is taking his sweet time as he tries to pick what team to play for.
