Love To Denver Makes A Lot Of Sense. Unless You Lose Faried

I am formally joining the Kevin Love to the Denver Nuggets bandwagon. Unless it means we have to give up Kenneth Faried.

If you are not a Nuggets fan, or you are considering this trade as part of your fantasy draft, you might think I have a screw loose, but follow me here.

Kevin Love might very well be the soup du jour, but he is marginally better than Kenneth Faried, and would represent the equivalent of making the same mistake that the Nuggets made when they lost Aaron Aaflalo to Orlando in order to acquire a player that they were never going to be able to keep in Andre Iguodala.  Don't get me wrong, both trades seem to make sense, but Iguodala is similar to Love in that we have seen the top of their upside.  With Aaflalo at the time and Faried right now, the question of potential looms.

Aaflalo remains an excellent defender, but was a rapidly developing scorer at the time. In the days away from Denver, he improved in both areas, maybe even surpassing Iguodala.  With Love, he is an excellent rebounder and an above average scorer although most of his points come from the rebounding effort (including subsequent freethrows) that he puts forth, not the long range bombs that he has become famous for.  Faried is capable of the same type of rebounding performance that Love produces and continues to tantalize the senses regarding his upside potential in this area.  As it relates to scoring, Faried does it much like Love gets it done, on rebounds and put backs.  Occasionally Faried will even find the range on his developing jump shot and free throw, but this is where he noticeably lags behind Love.  Either way, a Faried for Love trade threatens to have the Nuggets repeating a mistake of a few years back.  Swapping similar parts just for the sake of change and hoping the formula reaps playoff rewards.

The Nuggets are not Kevin Love alone away from a championship bid just as they were not Andre Iguodala away from one a few years back.  But Kenneth and Kevin?  Now you have the formula for a dynamic that could change the prospects for sure. I often wonder if the all-time best all-around player, Dennis Rodman, ever gets a chance to watch NBA basketball anymore.  So few players did it with the passion of Rodman, that it is hard for me to imagine any modern player that he would waste his Hall of Fame energy to watch.  If there are any players one could image Rodman being a fan of, it would be Joakim Noah, Kevin Love and Kenneth Faried, because they are the closest you will find to guys who play the game like he did.

Part of the Mile High mystique is in overcoming the altitude, especially if the Nuggets get out and run on you. The biggest problem with implementing a consistent running game is having the big men who can secure the rebound...every time, and also run the floor to insure the trail or lead options are exploited thoroughly.  Defense in the NBA is a loose translation for, make the shot harder than it would have been and DO NOT give up a second chance opportunity.  In translation, rebounding is defense in the NBA. Consequently, the seeds of victory for any would be champion are sown on the second chance points you get and in the ones you avoid giving up. The Chicago Bulls proved that even a team with no offense could make an interesting run at it with an immense effort on the boards.

Denver, with Kevin Love, become the quiet contender that no one will acknowledge until they have no choice anymore.  Just as the Broncos were tagged "The Donkey's" until they upset the Packers in a Superbowl, the Nuggets will always be fools gold until they get a game changing player to believe in the possibility of a championship in Denver. Love might actually decide on Denver, but it could take time to convince him that any smaller market team has a chance in today's star laden, big market NBA.

Or will it?

No one knows where Love goes, but he has played in Minnesota, so he knows what small market hoops is all about.  Yes, he may long for the big city as Carmelo Anthony did after leaving Denver, but if he longs for a championship, here is what the landscape looks like.  Next years prospective champion comes from a list that includes several small market teams, including Cleveland, Oklahoma City, Indiana and maybe even Denver if Love decides on that Mile High life.  The list of big market teams that should vie for the title might equal the small market list, but it doesn't surpass it.  This thing is fairly wide open, and Love has to know it.

Is Faried on his way out or will he Love rebounding with Kevin?

He also has to know the value of any player who does what he does on the boards.
 Absent Kenneth Faried, the Nuggets become a transformed representation of the very team that Love might leave.  With Kenneth Faried, Love should be counting up the rebounds per game (Mosgov and Hickson are not too shabby in this area either) and realize how many extra kick out 3's he might get when he isn't the guy trying to get the rebound as well.

I accept that my premise could be tainted but its because of  the Love I have for Denver and not for the Love I have of Kevin.  Kevin Love has yet to sniff the playoffs, which means he has yet to even open the book on the only test champions take.  It could also be the thin, THC infused air we breath out here, but I think my rationale will pass the piss test.

But first we need more Love in Denver.