With each passing day that Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic doesn't sign an extension with the Denver Nuggets, the Los Angeles Lakers' chances of landing him seemingly increase. Jokic has already indicated that he won't sign an extension with the Nuggets this offseason.
That means that he can hit unrestricted free agency next summer. The Lakers won't have cap space to steal Jokic away from the Nuggets, but they could still lure him to L.A. with the help of star Luka Doncic.
He is close friends with Jokic and would seemingly be the ideal recruiter for the three-time league MVP. If he were to decide to jump ship, the Lakers could work out a reasonable sign-and-trade with the Nuggets, possibly involving Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler.
Denver would be stuck between accepting the trade or potentially losing him for nothing to another team.
The Lakers' hopes of landing Nikola Jokic increase every day
The Nuggets failing to get Jokic to sign an extension this summer leaves them open to having him leave in free agency next summer. You better believe that the Lakers will move heaven and Earth to try and land him.
They even have a ready-made sign-and-trade package with Reaves and Kessler. Denver would obviously rather have Jokic, but it may not be up to them with him potentially able to leave next summer.
In that case, adding Reaves and Kessler might not be the worst-case scenario for the Nuggets. Reaves is an above-average starting shooting guard and a borderline all-star even. Meanwhile, Kessler is an above-average rim protector and rebounder.
That's obviously not how the Nuggets expect things to go, but there's a non-zero chance that that scenario plays out.
Can the Denver Nuggets keep Nikola Jokic away from the Lakers?
The Nuggets have been clearly trying to slash salary, and that has resulted in them making some questionable long-term moves. The Peyton Watson trade is just the latest.
They clearly got worse by moving on from Watson. And although they got a first- and second-round pick, that first isn't as good as many might expect.
The result is that the Nuggets got worse and may end up using that first-round pick to trade Christian Braun in the name of saving money. That might not help them keep Jokic happy and keeps the door open for the Lakers to swoop in and land him.
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