With the trade deadline just under two weeks away, the rumors will start flying fast and furious over the next 10 days. While you will hear plenty of familiar names on the block, what kind of value are they expected to fetch? Let’s take a look at nine key names that many expect to be on the move and see what it will take for them to find new homes after talking with front office personnel from around the league.
Jeremy Lin
Contract: 1 year remaining at $13.7 million
Overview: The Hawks have wisely kept his minutes down all year off the bench in hopes of ensuring his health and solid numbers at the trade deadline. He has delivered on both counts, shooting a career-high 49 percent from the field while averaging 10.9 points per game. He’s one of the few difference-maker guards that will be on the block this fall, so it’s fair to guess that the Hawks will be holding out hope for a first round pick for his services. That won’t happen unless Atlanta is willing to swallow a bad contract back for next year, otherwise, a couple of second round picks seems like a sure bet. His $13.7 million salary will make it a little tougher than usual to find a match, but he’s playing well enough where some playoff team will roll the dice on him.
Possible suitors: Kings, Blazers, Pelicans, 76ers
Trade value? A first-round pick (if taken with a bad deal) or two second-round picks
DeWayne Dedmon
Contract: 1 year remaining at $7.2 million
Overview: The 29-year-old center has added a 3-point shot to his game over the past two seasons to increase his versatility. He’s a strong rim protector and an elite defensive rebounder, which makes him an ideal candidate for a team looking for an improved defensive presence off the bench. He’s too old for Atlanta to want to retain over their rebuilding plan, so they will take what they can get for him ahead of Feb. 7.
Possible suitors: Sixers, Hornets, Blazers
Trade value? Second-round picks
Noah Vonleh
Contract: 1 year remaining at $1.5 million
Overview: After being a castoff playing for three teams over the past four seasons, the 23-year-old has found some solid footing in the Knicks starting five, developing a reliable jump shot while mixing in some solid board work on both ends. New York has no Bird Rights on him so there really is not much incentive to retain him for now, particularly if the team is planning on using their cap space next offseason on bigger names. The fact that he’s making minimum money makes him an ideal target that could fit into any playoff’s team budget.
Possible suitors: Hornets, Wizards, Pelicans, Sixers
Trade value: Second-round pick
Garrett Temple
Contract: 1 year remaining at $8 million
Overview: The wing market is generally pretty thin at the trade deadline, which makes a mid-level priced piece like Temple appealing to teams. He has been playing starter minutes all year long for Grizzlies, but he’s a much better fit in a bench role for a contender. His 35 percent 3-point shooting over his career will help a team spread the floor, and he has the size (6-foot-7) to guard a variety of players. He’s not part of the long-term plans for the Grizz (age: 33), so he’s a name that should be guaranteed to be on the move. He is out with a shoulder injury for the next 1-2 weeks which could impact his value.
Possible suitors: Thunder, Jazz, Bucks, Sixers, Pelicans
Trade value: Two second-round picks
JaMychal Green
Contract: 1 year remaining at $7.6 million
Overview: This will be one of the best players on the block, but a sore knee (he played just seven minutes on Saturday night) is a red flag to any suitor looking to nab the versatile forward who can knock down the 3 and bang with bigs down low. He’s old enough (29) where the Grizzlies seem unlikely to retain him beyond this year, and given his reasonable contract, landing a late first round pick for the big man doesn’t seem like a stretch. That kind of haul will be dependent on health though.
Possible suitors: Sixers, Thunder, Blazers
Trade value: Late first-round pick
Marc Gasol
Contract: 2 years remaining at $50 million (final year is a player option)
Overview: The veteran center is now on the trade block according to the team, but finding a home given his hefty salary will be easier said than done if the Grizzlies are looking for value. A league source tells BostonSportsJournal.com that a couple of playoff hopefuls have offers on the table of a first round pick and a bad contract (to match money) if the Grizzlies merely want to get some type of compensation instead of risking Gasol walking for nothing this offseason. Given his ties to the franchise, it’s unclear if that type of package will be enough to pry him loose.
Possible suitors: Nets, Hornets
Trade value: First round pick (pair with a bad contract)
Mike Conley
Contract: 3 years remaining at $85 million (final year is a player option)
Overview: The money on his deal makes it even tougher to move, since it essentially forces any deal to turn into a blockbuster to match money. Conley is on the wrong side of 30 so the only teams it makes sense to go after him are ones that likely won’t have the ability to land a player at his level in free agency. There are lots of mid-market teams that could use the boost, but the Grizzlies aren’t just going to move him for the sake of getting him off the books. It’s a similar to Kemba Walker's situation last year, who ended up staying put. I don’t expect the Grizz to get enough to move him.
Possible suitors: Pacers, Pistons, Jazz
Trade value: First round pick (and matching money)
On the block but likely to be bought out
Robin Lopez
Contract: 1 year remaining at $14 million
Overview: He has been a steady shot blocker for most of his career, but he’s shown some serious slippage at age 30 with a career-high turnover rate and a career-low rebounding rate. He will be useful for some contender as a big man option off the bench, but he’s not worth trading for, given his salary. I’d expect some kind of buyout here unless his money is used to facilitate a bigger deal between two teams.
Possible suitors: Warriors, Hornets
Trade value: Salary filler
Enes Kanter
Contract: 1 year remaining at $18 million
Overview: A better player than Lopez at this stage of his career, but he’s too much of a defensive liability for any team to invest serious assets into him. He’s a useful bench big that clearly has no future in New York and general manager Scott Perry won’t be looking to sacrifice any future cap space in a swap for him. A buyout seems like the most likely ending here with a landing spot on some team that is willing to guarantee him some playing time.
Possible suitors: Hornets, Clippers, Rockets
Trade Value: Salary filler
NBA News and Notes
- Hate to see Victor Oladipo go down for the season with such a serious injury for a Pacers team that was playing some great basketball during the first half of the season. It puts general manager Kevin Pritchard in a tough spot as he now balances adding a trade piece to make this group competitive in the playoffs or saving his assets for next year. Given the amount of future cap space they have, wouldn’t be surprised to see him make a big splash.
- Carmelo Anthony finally found a new home with the Bulls and will certainly be bought out or traded again before the deadline next week. The guess here is that he lands alongside LeBron James in Lakers in a move that would hurt a reeling Lakers team more than helping it.
- Dennis Smith Jr. is back with the Mavericks after the offers for the point guard were not so promising for the front office. His market is reflective of a deep point guard market around the league. There’s no need to risk too much to bring one aboard since there will be so many good ones available in free agency this summer.
- Terrific landing spot in Houston for Kenneth Faried, who should soak up double-doubles for the next month while Clint Capela recovers from a hand injury. It would not surprise me to see the Rockets vault back into the top-3 in the West as they get healthy with Chris Paul and Capela coming back in the next few weeks