The Denver Nuggets won their first championship in franchise history by beating the Miami Heat in five games, and in a recent article, Jalen Williams could’ve won a ring during his rookie season.
According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, it was revealed the Nuggets tried to trade up to the No. 10 pick with the Washington Wizards in the 2022 NBA draft to select Williams.
“In the 2022 draft, Booth — now the top decision-maker and holding the No. 22 pick — thought about trading up with Washington for No. 10 with an eye on Jalen Williams. (No such deal emerged.)”
Of course, that didn’t play out as the Thunder selected Williams with the No. 12 pick on the second of back-to-back lottery selections for OKC. The Thunder also drafted Ousmane Dieng with the No. 11 pick after trading for the selection.
Williams would’ve provided the Nuggets with a legit starting forward option during their title run. Instead, he enjoyed a superb rookie campaign for the Thunder where he finished No. 2 in Rookie of the Year voting.
