Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was the first casualty of the Denver Nuggets‘ goal of avoiding the punitive second apron while trying to contend for a second NBA championship.

Michael Porter Jr. could be the next domino to fall with Jamal Murray‘s extension looming which could be for four years and $208.5 million, according to ESPN’s NBA front office insider Bobby Marks.

In a new hypothetical trade idea from Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz, Denver shakes up their starting lineup with a three-team deal including the Detroit Pistons and Brooklyn Nets. The hypothetical trade has a lot of moving pieces:

Denver Nuggets Receive: Cam Johnson and Ziaire Williams

Detroit Pistons Receive: Michael Porter Jr.

Brooklyn Nets Receive: Isaiah Stewart, Tim Hardaway Jr., 2025 second-round pick (via Toronto Raptors, and a 2027 second-round pick (via Detroit Pistons)

Sending Porter Jr. and his large contract to Detroit, the Nuggets would create some financial flexibility by bringing back Johnson, who is entering the second year of his four-year, $94.5M contract.

For comparison, Porter is entering the third year of his five-year, $179.3M deal (via Spotrac). Both contracts expire after the 2026-27 season, but Porter’s is much more expensive.

This was a big part of Bleacher Report’s justification for this hypothetical deal, as Swartz wrote, “This kind of savings will help the Nuggets keep their core of Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon together while not sacrificing Porter’s skill set. Denver saves $6.1 million this season and another $6.1 million next summer when Williams’ contract expires in addition to the salary drop from Porter to Johnson.”

The Denver Nuggets have had an intriguing NBA offseason. Losing Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in free agency, Denver did not replace his skillset. A 41.5 percent three-point shooter in his two seasons with Denver, Caldwell-Pope helped the Nuggets win their first NBA championship in 2023.

While the Nuggets lost Caldwell-Pope, they did upgrade their point guard depth by signing nine-time NBA All-Star Russell Westbrook after trading away Reggie Jackson. Westbrook projects to fill a lot of Denver’s needs as an additional ball handler and point of attack defender.

While they still have arguably the NBA’s best player in Nikola Jokic, many feel the Nuggets are still a move away from being the league’s most feared team again.