It's about that time of the year. Sure, it is Christmas time and the holiday season, but in the NBA, it is the start of trade season. On Dec. 15, a slew of players who signed contracts during the offseason become trade-eligible. If we know one thing about this league, it is that teams are always looking to make adjustments to their roster in some very unlikely ways.
Last season saw the Brooklyn Nets dismantle their roster led by Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, as well as the Los Angeles Lakers giving up on Russell Westbrook. Stars and role players are always on the move during the NBA trade season, which is why we should expect nothing less this year once Dec. 15 passes.
So far this season, a lot of the discussion around the league has been fixated on the Chicago Bulls and Toronto Raptors, two struggling Eastern Conference organizations that may very well be ready to retool. Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan have been trade targets of rival teams since this past summer, yet the Bulls have been unwilling to give up hope. A LaVine trade does seem like a forgone conclusion at this point, but Chicago doesn't seem ready for a full rebuild just yet.
As for the Raptors, Pascal Siakam enters the final year of his contract. No extension appears to be on the horizon, leading to questions about if Toronto will ultimately give Scottie Barnes the keys to the franchise. That transition is seemingly already happening, leading to increased trade chatter surrounding Siakam and OG Anunoby.
Before we know it, February and the trade deadline will be here. Over the next several weeks, buyers and sellers around the league will emerge, fighting one another in order to find the best trade possible. Various teams may have been giving some thought to potential trades, but with a vast majority of the league becoming trade-eligible on Friday, we will begin to see a lot more rumors emerge.
While there is always a little bit of truth to rumors around the Association, not everything turns out to be the way it is being described. Anything can happen at any time, and the latest batch of NBA rumors surrounding LaVine, Siakam, and others could just tell the tale for how this season will play out.
Zach LaVine will be traded before deadline
Nothing has gone right for the Chicago Bulls in recent years. Between injuries to Lonzo Ball and this team's inability to jell with one another, the Bulls are in the same positions as they were a season again terms of hovering around the play-in region of the Eastern Conference standings. Zach LaVine is injured and is not faking his injury, but it is a little coincidental that he is going to be out through the middle of January when every player in the league will become trade-eligible.
While the Philadelphia 76ers, Miami Heat, and Los Angeles Lakers have been a few of the teams interested in LaVine through the years, there has not really been any momentum in terms of the All-Star possible being moved. His $40 million contract is a lot for any team to absorb, plus there are still three seasons left on his contract after this one (the final season of the deal is a player option worth nearly $49 million).
Does LaVine truly make any championship-contending team that much better as their third option making more than $40 million per year over the next couple of seasons?
Teams know that the Bulls have their backs up against the wall right now and are willing to deal LaVine, which is why there has been no traction in trade discussions right now. However, the Bulls continue to receive interest in DeMar DeRozan, who is in the final year of his contract, and Alex Caruso. Contending teams are able to absorb DeRozan's contract much easier than LaVine's, and Caruso has generated the most interest out of any player in Chicago. The problem with Caruso is that the Bulls have no intentions of trading him whatsoever.
Circling back to LaVine, it is reasonable to believe the All-Star will be on the move ahead of the trade deadline in February. LaVine has been frustrated in Chicago, and it finally appears as if the team is wanting to make some substantial changes to their roster. Moving on from a guy they just invested over $200 million in would surely be a franchise-altering change.
Buy or Sell: Buy, LaVine's days as a Bull are numbered.
Lakers will trade for Zach LaVine
When any big star becomes available in trade talks, the first photo edit you always see is said player in a Lakers uniform. The expectations Los Angeles fans have for their team is outrageous, as they tend to believe the Lakers can have 15 All-Stars on their roster every single season. As crazy as it may sound, the Lakers may actually have a shot at landing LaVine if they want him.
Whether or not the Bulls would be willing to agree to a trade with Los Angeles is a whole separate question.
D'Angelo Russell and Gabe Vincent both become trade-eligible on Friday, but Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura cannot be dealt until Jan. 15 after re-signing with the Lakers this past offseason. Reaves and Hachimura could wind up being the key to a deal involving LaVine.
If the Lakers were to package Reaves, Russell, and Hachimura together, that would be $45 million coming off their books, enough money to absorb LaVine's heft contract. By making this move, the Lakers would tie themselves down financially with LaVine not having an opt out clause until the 2026-27 season. This could wind up being problematic for Los Angeles.
As far as waiting around for LaVine goes, the Lakers can take their time in this process and truly work with the Bulls on a trade over the coming weeks leading up to Jan. 15 seeing as no other teams are in a rush to try and acquire him. However, this does not necessarily mean that other teams won't be interested as the season progresses.
Keep an eye on teams like the Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Utah Jazz, and Memphis Grizzlies. These four teams have young talents they could possibly trade in order to add a star like LaVine. Then again, we shouldn't really count on any of these teams being in the running for the Bulls star, as he will likely want to go to an organization that is contending for a title.
The Lakers have a very real chance at grabbing LaVine this season, and it seems like the star is interested in heading to Los Angeles. Then again, the Lakers just won the NBA In-Season Tournament and made the Western Conference Finals with a vast majority of this roster last year. Taking on LaVine's contract while sacrificing three key role players in the process doesn't seem like a signature Rob Pelinka move.
At the very least, it doesn't seem as if the Lakers have much interest in trading Reaves in a LaVine deal. Reaves has bounced back from a slow start to the season and looks like a core piece moving forward, but we will see what happens between now and Jan. 15.
Buy or Sell: Sell, although don't be surprised if it actually does happen.
Pascal Siakam's days in Toronto are numbered
The days of competing at the top of the Eastern Conference seem to be over for the Toronto Raptors. This organization has been on a downhill trend over the last couple of seasons and, now, there does not seem to be a sense of direction. Scottie Barnes is clearly the player this organization believes in, but where does that leave Pascal Siakam?
At 29 years old and in the final year of his contract, there has been a ton of speculation about if the Raptors will finally move on from Siakam. Over the summer, Siakam was a key trade target for the Atlanta Hawks. It appears as if that interest still exists.
According to HoopsHype's Michael Scotto, the Hawks are once again monitoring Siakam as a potential trade target. The Sacramento Kings and Philadelphia 76ers, and Indiana Pacers were also named as potential suitors for the Raptors star. Just this past offseason, Atlanta was aggressively pursuing Siakam, league sources told ClutchPoints.
For Siakam, everything comes down to a possible extension with Toronto.
Spending the entirety of his eight-year career with the Raptors, Siakam truly doesn't have a reason to leave. With him, Barnes, and OG Anunoby, Toronto could wind up being one star player away from being real threats. Then again, this team lacks secondary talent and nothing about them really instills fear in their opponents like the powerhouses in the East do.
There does not appear to be an extension on the horizon for Siakam as this team continues to remain in the hunt for positioning in the play-in tournament region of the standings. If a team is willing to Masai Ujiri's insane asking prices for star players, the two-time All-Star will be on the move.
Nevertheless, this is one of those “believe it when you see it” type of situations.
Buy or Sell: Sell, No team is willing to meet Ujiri's asking price right now.
PJ Tucker will be bought out by Clippers
When it comes to guys who give it their all defensively on the court and play their role to perfection, PJ Tucker comes up in every single one of these conversations. Now 38 years old, Tucker is nearing the end of the line in what has been a very successful career with a handful of franchises. Recently, he was included in the James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers trade.
The problem with Tucker right now is that he is not playing, and it does not appear as if he has a long-term home with the Clippers. Once a premier 3-and-D player in the league, Tucker wants to be with a team that values him for what he is able to do on the court. While he has fallen off a bit, the veteran still thinks he has something left in the tank.
“I feel like I still got a lot to contribute to a team to be able to win, whether that's here or somewhere else,” PJ Tucker told ClutchPoints' Tomer Azarly recently in an exclusive interview. “I know myself, my worth. I know what I bring. I know what I've brought. I know what I can continue to bring. And with that, I want to be able to go to a good team that I can be able to help that.”
Tucker is not happy with his role on the Clippers, he isn't playing in games, and at the end of the day, it just seems best for the two sides to go their opposite ways. Minutes are not going to magically appear for Tucker unless the Clippers have a drastic injury. At that point, the veteran can only give Los Angeles so much.
With rookie Kobe Brown starting to see time over Tucker, it just feels like a matter of time before something happens here. LA could seek a trade, but that seems unlikely and a buyout is a better bet.
Buy/Sell: Buy, PJ Tucker doesn't want to be with the Clippers.
Warriors blow up championship core
Following the 2020-21 season, many began asking if the Golden State Warriors were done and if their core of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green had played their final games together. Then the 2021-22 season came and the Warriors were the last team standing with the Larry O'Brien Trophy. Here we are less than two years later and these conversations are being had about if the Warriors are done.
However, there is some major traction towards Golden State making major roster decisions with Thompson and Green this time around.
Let's just get this out of the way for starters: Curry is not going anywhere anytime soon. Steph is the face of the Warriors and turned this organization into one of the most valuable franchise in the NBA. Without him, the Warriors are not the Warriors.
Can the same thing be said about Thompson or Green?
Klay has looked like a shell of the player he used to be so far this season and Green has been suspended yet again by the NBA. This time, his suspension is indefinite and there is no clear timetable for when Green will return to the floor, that is if he does come back this season. After beginning the season 6-2, the Warriors are now 10-14 with the season rapidly getting out of hand.
Although everyone is calling for change, it's really hard to imagine the Warriors giving up on what has won them four championships since 2015. The league is constantly growing and perhaps the era in which Golden State dominated is actually over after a decade. The idea of the Warriors trading Klay or Draymond, especially after he signed a $100 million contract this past offseason, is just crazy to believe.
Change is coming for the Warriors, but the core of Curry, Thompson, and Green will remain, at least until Thompson enters free agency this upcoming summer.
Buy/Sell: Sell, Golden State is not giving up on their championship hopes.
Follow Us
Subscribe