The Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets are actively working to trade up in the 2026 NBA Draft – and league insider Jake Fischer reports both franchises are “increasingly interested in exploring their own draft trades.” Both teams hold late first-round picks and want premium talent, not consolation selections at the back of round one.
Fischer’s reporting is explicit: the Celtics (No. 27) and Nuggets (No. 26) are “aggressively searching for opportunities to draft premium young talent rather than remaining at the end of the first round,” according to sources within both front offices. That framing is pointed. This is not passive exploration – this is a coordinated push before draft night.
What remains unconfirmed is the specific trade partner and the final price. No deal has been announced. The market is forming, not settled.
The Broader Draft Market They’re Operating In
The Celtics and Nuggets are not the only contenders shopping this section of the draft. Fischer also linked the Minnesota Timberwolves – holding the No. 28 pick – as another title-level team available for a deal, specifically targeting a ball-handling guard. Three championship-caliber franchises hunting in the same draft range is not coincidence. It’s a seller’s market for any team sitting in picks 13 through 25.
The most likely trade-down partner at the lottery level is the Los Angeles Clippers, who hold the No. 5 pick and are widely considered by league sources as the most likely team to slide down in the top five, according to reporting by Kevin O’Connor. The Oklahoma City Thunder add more volatility – they hold picks No. 12, 17, and 37 and have held exploratory discussions about moving up in the top ten, per Anthony Slater and Tim MacMahon. OKC as a trade-up competitor would directly compress the options available to Boston and Denver.
The New Orleans Pelicans, holding only the No. 58 pick, are also actively trying to acquire a first-rounder – adding another buyer into an already crowded market. Supply of tradeable picks is limited. Demand is not. Check the 2026 NBA Draft big board for the full prospect landscape both teams are targeting.
What the Nuggets Could Get
Denver’s calculus here goes beyond draft positioning. Marc Stein has reported that the Nuggets’ preferred path to a roster reset runs through a Christian Braun trade rather than deals involving Aaron Gordon or Jamal Murray. That preference matters enormously. A Braun-plus-No. 26 package gives Denver genuine lottery-level leverage – a proven rotational wing attached to a late first is a real asset bundle, not just a pick swap. For more on Denver’s broader offseason picture, the Aaron Gordon trade speculation provides key context on why the Nuggets need to move pieces this summer.
The Giannis Ripple Effect
The wider draft market is being shaped by a hypothetical Giannis Antetokounmpo trade – outlined in Brett Siegel’s 2026 NBA Mock Draft 3.5 at ClutchPoints – that would send the superstar to the Miami Heat in exchange for Tyler Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr., and the No. 13 overall pick. The Milwaukee Bucks are targeting three first-round picks total in this class and currently hold just one. Their pick accumulation strategy is actively reshaping the middle of the board that Boston and Denver want to climb into. The Celtics’ own positioning in those Giannis conversations is worth tracking – Boston’s draft interest and potential targets have already drawn serious attention this offseason.
The decision point arrives before or on draft night: does a lottery team – most plausibly the Clippers at No. 5 or a mid-lottery club – decide to monetize its position? That answer determines how far up Boston and Denver can realistically climb. The probability that at least one of these two teams executes a trade-up sits at roughly 65/35 in favor – the insider reporting is too specific and coordinated to read as casual interest. Watch the Clippers and Thunder closely. Their decisions unlock or close the market entirely.
