5 trade ideas to save the Toronto Raptors
By Adam Stocker
2. Patrick Patterson, Jared Sullinger, Terrence Ross and a 2017 first round pick to Denver for Kenneth Faried and Wilson Chandler
Masai Ujiri drafted Kenneth Faried while he was the general manager of the Denver Nuggets. From all reports, Ujiri still has a good relationship with his former employer. Denver is currently sitting eighth in the east, which might make this trade slightly more unlikely.
Faried’s upside has dwindled and he is basically a high-energy rebounder and rim runner who doesn’t offer much on defense. Signed until 2019, Denver maybe willing to dump his contract for financial flexibility this summer. In Toronto, Faried would instantly become their starting forward and fit well next to Valanciunas on the defensive end of the court. Offensively, Faried’s inability to stretch the floor past the three-point line, is not the ideal scenario, which is why adding Chandler helps. Chandler can shoot and can slide between both forward positions giving Toronto a better small ball look and helping offset the loss of Ross.
Both Patrick Patterson and Jared Sullinger are free agents at the end of the season. Patterson is a slight downgrade from Faried, but would serve the same purpose in Denver. The trade would also allow Denver to give more minutes to Nikola Jokic and some of the other young talented big men. The late first round pick would also be an appealing asset for Denver to use in the summer. Additionally, Denver will have enormous cap space freed over the next two seasons.