The NBA trade deadline has come and gone, and none of the big names that were on the table ended up moving. There were still a lot of moves made, however, that could affect some teams in contention. Here’s a recap of the day’s moves:
According to Shams Charania of The Vertical, the Thunder have agreed to a deal to acquire Doug McDermott and Taj Gibson from the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls also get a 2018 second-round pick in exchange for Cameron Payne, Joffrey Lauvergne and Anthony Morrow. Take a look at analysis of the trade by our very own Matt Moore.
The Raptors have reportedly traded for the Suns’ P.J. Tucker in exchange for Jared Sullinger and two future second-round picks.
The Atlanta Hawks have reportedly sent Mike Scott to the Phoenix Suns, and will get cash in return.
The Lakers have reportedly acquired Tyler Ennis from the Rockets in exchange for Marcelo Huertas.
The Pacers are reportedly not moving Paul George at the trade deadline. Per Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical:
The Denver Nuggets have reportedly acquired Roy Hibbert from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for a second-round pick.
The Brooklyn Nets were largely thought to be sellers at the trade deadline, but they decided to buy on the Houston Rockets’ K.J. McDaniels. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical has reported that McDaniels is heading to Brooklyn. Here’s analysis from our Matt Moore about how this sets up Houston to possibly get Andrew Bogut.
McDaniels is a 6-6 athletic wing who was shown flashes in limited playing time with the 76ers and the Rockets. Wojnarowski reports that the Rockets are unloading McDaniels’ $3 million contract possibly to set themselves up to acquire a player who has been bought out by another team.
Could we see Paul George in a Celtics uniform? According to The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Celtics have begun to include the Nets’ 2017 first-round draft pick in conversations about the Pacers’ star forward. Because of how bad the Nets have been this season, the pick will likely be in the top three, possibly first overall.
The Pacers would likely require a large haul in order to part ways with George, which would mean probably at least two more established players in addition to the Nets’ pick. Will Danny Ainge be willing to pull the trigger?
Nerlens Noel is reportedly going to be a be a member of the Dallas Mavericks, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. Philadelphia will reportedly send Noel to Dallas in exchange for Justin Anderson, Andrew Bogut and a first-round pick.
Noel has been on the trade block for a while, considering the 76ers plethora of young big men. Dallas is looking to get younger, and Noel’s defense and athleticism will fit nicely alongside an aging Dirk Nowitzki.
After dealing Terrence Ross in the Serge Ibaka deal, the Toronoto Raptors are reportedly looking for another forward before the trade deadline. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Raptors are pursuing the Suns’ P.J. Tucker and Denver’s Wilson Chandler.
Both Tucker and Chandler are clearly available, so it’s just a matter of whether Toronto can come up with a package that pleases the Suns or Nuggets. Both Tucker and Chandler can play either forward position, which would give the Raptors incredible versatility with both the starting unit and the bench unit.
The Bulls are reportedly willing to part ways with Taj Gibson, Doug McDermott and Nikola Mirotic if the price is right.
Chicago has also been telling teams that Jimmy Butler is off the table, according to reports, so it makes sense for them to unload pieces they don’t consider essential in order to build around Butler for the future.
Just for the record, our Matt Moore says this is a terrible idea for the Wolves. Reports are indicating that Minnesota’s Ricky Rubio is a significant target for the Knicks heading into Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline. Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported it Thursday morning, and the deal makes sense considering the Wolves have reportedly been in the market for Derrick Rose. ESPN’s Marc Stein reports that a straight-up Rose-for-Rubio swap is unlikely, and that the Knicks would want another piece in the deal.
The Bulls and Sixers had talks a few weeks back about a deal involving Jahlil Okafor, who the Sixers are a little desperate to unload given the emergence of Joel Embiid. With the trade deadline rapidly approaching on Thursday, those talks are gaining traction:
Those talks have reportedly been centered around Nikola Mirotic, according to Adrian Wojnarowski. Mirotic, a “shooter’ with a 29 percent 3-point mark this season, is expendable for Chicago with its available stretch fours in Bobby Portis and Cristiano Felicio. Mirotic is athletic and has a good rebound rate, better than Jahlil Okafor’s relative to position. But Okafor’s younger, still huge, and still has a promising set of post moves.
The Los Angeles Lakers are “in the process of trying to land†Indiana Pacers star forward Paul George, according to USA Today’s Sam Amick, who also reported that the “landscape is complicated elsewhere, too, in large part because of his desire to sign with the Lakers if the Pacers experience simply doesn’t pan out.â€
If you’re wearing a Kobe Bryant jersey right now and jumping up and down, there’s more, via The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski:
For teams considering a trade for George, here’s the risk: As a free agent in the summer of 2018, he has considered re-signing with Indiana or joining his hometown Los Angeles Lakers, sources tell The Vertical.
Teams trading for George run the risk of losing the four-time All-Star to a Lakers franchise that will have the salary-cap space to sign him in 2018. The Lakers’ hiring of Magic Johnson as president of basketball operations will be an interesting twist to George’s free-agent recruitment, given that Johnson has been something of a George family icon going back to George’s childhood in nearby Palmdale, Calif.
We’ll see what the future holds for Paul George, but as of now it appears him leaving Indiana before the deadline is a very real possibility.
With the trade deadline coming up Thursday at 3 p.m ET, the Indiana Pacers apparently have not decided whether they are buyers or sellers. The Pacers front office is simultaneously looking at ways to improve their roster in hopes of convincing Paul George to re-sign and testing the trade market for George, who will likely be a free agent in the summer of 2018, per The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Maybe Indiana will make a blockbuster move before the deadline. If it doesn’t, that doesn’t mean this storyline is going away. The Pacers could decide to try to get George some help now -- they’ve been linked to Philadelphia 76ers big man Jahlil Okafor in recent days, which is confusing -- and then reevaluate this situation at the end of the season. If George stays and Indiana stays mediocre, expect to hear more rumors around draft night.
Boston Celtics president Danny Ainge wants to nab Chicago Bulls star Jimmy Butler before Thursday’s trade deadline, and the “main sticking point†is not which draft pick (or picks) are included in the deal, but whether or not forward Jae Crowder will be involved, according to TNT’s David Aldridge, via CelticsHub’s Brian Robb.
“I think the Jimmy Butler stuff is real,†Aldridge said on NBA TV. “They have been trying to get Jimmy Butler. [Ainge] doesn’t want to give up Jae Crowder. That’s the main sticking point there and he doesn’t want to give up Jae Crowder in a deal and that’s the guy the Bulls are insisting on right now in any package for Butler.
“The picks will work themselves out. Boston has about 600 first-round picks in the next five years, so they’ll make it work. That part I’m not worried about. I think it really comes down to Crowder. In terms of real, tangible players, I think Danny would like to go into the playoffs with Smart, Bradley, Crowder defensively along with Butler, Horford, Thomas offensively. I think he feels like that’s he only way they’ll be able to compete with a team like Cleveland.
“Chicago, I think rightly, is saying, ‘If you want our best player, we’re not going to just do it for picks. We’re not going to take guys you aren’t going to keep on your roster. We want a guy that is going to be able to grow with us, along with one of those high picks.’ They want a top half of the lottery type of pick for Jimmy Butler, along with a starting established player under contract. I understand that from Chicago’s point of view.â€
More surely to develop. Stay posted.
If it wasn’t abundantly clear already, Paul Millsap is not going anywhere. Atlanta Hawks general manager Wes Wilcox told The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski that, not only is the All-Star forward definitely not going to be traded before Thursday’s deadline, Millsap will be the front office’s top priority when it comes to free agency this summer. In January, Atlanta explored the possibility of trading him, but decided against it after testing the market.
“Paul Millsap is not going to be traded, and Paul Millsap is absolutely our priority this offseason, in re-signing him with the Atlanta Hawks,†Wilcox said. “We’ve communicated that to Paul, his team, and we feel great about our position there. We also don’t want to hide from the fact that, yeah, we took a long, hard look at it earlier in the season, during a period of time where our team was struggling, and ultimately decided that Paul is far too valuable to us. And through that period of time and that excerise, we made that decision to absolutely keep Paul. and he is certainly our priority.â€
New Orleans Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday will be a free agent this summer, and, relatively recently, it looked like the front office had to figure out whether to trade him before Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET deadline. Now that the Pelicans have DeMarcus Cousins, though, it appears that is no longer under consideration, via ESPN’s Justin Verrier:
The concern was that, with New Orleans failing to build a contender around Anthony Davis, Holiday could choose to sign somewhere that would give him a better chance of winning. This would obviously be a huge setback for the Pelicans, who need Davis and Holiday on the court to be competitive. With Cousins on board, Holiday has much more incentive to stay, as long as the front office is willing to offer a significant raise.
Maybe you can go home again. Deron Williams has been a popular trade target due to his veteran status and expiring $9 million contract. Now an interesting suitor has emerged: his former team, the Utah Jazz. From ESPN:
The Utah Jazz have expressed interest in reacquiring former All-Star guard Deron Williams via trade from the Dallas Mavericks, according to league sources.No deal appeared imminent Tuesday night, sources told ESPN.com, but Utah has registered its interest in bringing Williams back to his original team, with Dallas open to making both Williams and center Andrew Bogut available to other teams in advance of Thursday’s 3 p.m. ET trade deadline.
Source: Utah Jazz express interest in re-acquiring former All-Star guard Deron Williams.
The Jazz have needed guard help: Dante Exum has regressed and been struggling for some time. Williams would give them a veteran guard who can run the offense. Between Williams and Joe Johnson, they would have a very strong veteran core off the bench with Boris Diaw for their playoff run.
Last week, word surfaced that the Pistons were very quietly, under the radar exploring trade offers -- not only for franchise point guard Reggie Jackson, but franchise center Andre Drummond. At the time, odds of a deal involving Drummond seemed low, and they remain low. But the noise isn’t going away as Thursday’s trade deadline draws near.
Several league sources told CBS Sports Tuesday that the talks are best described as “exploratory.†A deal is not considered to be imminent. Often times teams will pick up the phone for trade talks over a star player and use whatever is made available from potential suitors to try and negotiate other deals as upgrades without giving up the star player. President of Basketball Operations Stan Van Gundy addressed the rumors on Tuesday.
Drummond’s a major get and you can bet that even if the chances are slim, the Pistons will receive a lot of offers in the next 48 hours.
Wanting to get better, the Pacers are reportedly very active days before the Feb. 23 trade deadline. And in an effort to give Paul George more help, according to ESPN, the Pacers are targeting Sixers big man Jahlil Okafor.
The Pacers are trying to show George that they want to get better and continue to build around him. George is a free agent in 2018 and could potentially leave the Pacers -- the team he’s spent his whole career with -- if he is unhappy with his situation. His unhappiness and general down demeanor has been a theme this season as he has complained about Pacers fans and even said that there is a dark cloud hanging over the team. We’ll see if Indiana makes this move and possibly others before the deadline.
Forget Jahlil Okafor, Lou Williams and Derrick Favors -- let’s talk about the big boys. According to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, the Celtics and Clippers have engaged in trade talks involving All-Star forward Blake Griffin.
“[The Celtics] have talked intermittently with the Clippers about Blake Griffin in recent weeks, per several league sources, but a deal is extremely unlikely. Griffin will be a free agent this summer, and Boston would probably need official permission to talk to him about his future -- a concession Minnesota allowed Cleveland before the Kevin Love trade. The Clips would ask for a bounty, starting with Jae Crowder and one of the Avery Bradley/Marcus Smart duo, plus picks, per league sources.â€
Note that Lowe said the trade is extremely unlikely, but remember that the Kingstraded DeMarcus Cousins a few days after saying there was absolutely no way they were going to trade him. If the offer is right, teams can change their minds quickly.
The Utah Jazz are reportedly gauging league-wide interest in big man Derrick Favors. But according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, it is unclear if the Jazz are actually serious about trading Favors:
They’ve tested the market for Derrick Favors over the last few weeks, according to several league sources; Favors hasn’t been quite the same since coming back from injury, and Utah plays Favors and Rudy Gobert together for only 10 or 12 minutes per game.
Utah’s seriousness on Favors is unclear; they are mum as usual, and they don’t want to weaken their team ahead of the playoffs with Hayward heading to free agency. Favors is still an important player. They could be testing the market ahead of a trade around the draft.
With his playing time getting drastically reduced by the Pelicans’ acquistion of DeMarcus Cousins, New Orleans is looking to trade Terrence Jones. According to ESPN’s Chris Haynes, Jones is also in favor of a move from New Orleans:
There has been plenty of speculation that the Chicago Bulls may trade Jimmy Butler. The Boston Celtics are perhaps the main team mentioned whenever these rumors pop up. But according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, Butler isn’t going anywhere as of right now:
Plenty can happen before Thursday’s 2 p.m. trade deadline, but according to multiple sources, the Bulls and Celtics haven’t held substantive talks about Butler since June, and Butler’s camp is under the impression that the Bulls won’t move the three-time All-Star this week.
Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau may be looking to reunite with Derrick Rose in Minnesota.
According to ESPN’s Ian Begley, the Timberwolves have talked to the Knicks about a possible trade involving Rose. Begley reports that “it is unclear†what the Timberwolves would offer the Knicks for the former MVP. The Timberwolves aren’t the only team inquiring about Rose as Begley reports that several teams have reached out to the Knicks about their starting point guard.
The Timberwolves are reportedly trying to move Ricky Rubio before Thursday’s trade deadline, so maybe he could be involved in a move for Rose. But overall, this report shows that the Timberwolves are looking to improve at the point guard position and aren’t ready to hand over the reigns to rookie Kris Dunn. Of course, Rose likely isn’t that much of an upgrade from Rubio, especially on the defensive end. Offensively, Rose could provide some scoring punch with Zach LaVine out for the rest of a season with a torn ACL.
After all the drama between Phil Jackson and Carmelo Anthony, it appears the Knicks’ All-Star isn’t going anywhere -- at least not this season. According to reports, Carmelo hasn’t been willing to waive his no-trade clause for any of the offers the Knicks have sent his way, and interested teams have now moved on to other targets.
Teams like the Clippers, Cavs and Bulls that had reportedly shown interest lack the significant assets to make a deal the Knicks would be willing to accept, so it makes sense that no trade will likely be made. But just because Anthony won’t be moved before the trade deadline doesn’t mean he’ll be a Knick next season -- trade rumors will likely heat up again this summer.
The Washington Wizards are reportedly willing to give up a first-round pick to get some bench help. According to reports, Washington has its eye on Lakers guard Lou Williams and Nets forward Bojan Bogdanovic.
In a vacuum, trading a first-round pick in a deep draft to rent a bench scorer for a few months seems like a bad idea, but the Wizards have won 18 of their last 21 games and are quickly closing in on the Celtics and Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference. Especially given Cleveland’s injury problems this season, this might be the right time to go into win-now mode and try to steal one of the top two seeds in the East.
Williams is a straight bucket-getter who was no problem fitting into any team. He’s averaging a career-high 18.6 points off the bench for the Lakers this season, and is a leading candidate to win his second Sixth Man of the Year award. He would immediately bolster a weak Wizards second unit that doesn’t have a player averaging more than six points per game.
Bogdanovic isn’t quite the high-octane scorer that Williams is, but he is a big improvement over what the Wizards are currently working with. The 6-8 forward is averaging 14.2 points per game while shooting 35 percent on 3-pointers.
The Thunder and Clippers are reportedly both going hard after Nuggets forward Wilson Chandler. The 6-8 three/four combo would be a great help to either team, but the question is whether either can come up with a package attractive enough for Denver to pull the trigger.
For the Clippers he could slide right into the small forward spot in the starting lineup or add some scoring to the bench unit. He could also allow the Clippers to play small for stretches of the game, moving Blake Griffin to the five and having Chandler fill in at the four.
For the Thunder, particularly with the injury to Enes Kanter, they just need someone besides Westbrook who can put the ball in the basket. Chandler can clearly do that, and would fit nicely as a scorer and floor-spacer alongside Westbrook and Steven Adams.
The struggling Indiana Pacers are looking for help for All-Star Paul George, and they’re reportedly willing to give up their first-round pick to do it. According to a report from ESPN, the Pacers are shopping their 2017 first-round draft pick in hopes of landing a talent to place alongside George.
The Pacers made moves in the offseason to bolster the roster for first-year head coach Nate McMillan, but they haven’t exactly panned out. Point guard Jeff Teague has shown flashes of brilliance, but lacks consistency. Backup center Al Jefferson has been largely a non-factor. Indiana is clearly now in the mode to help build around George and young talent Myles Turner, and they’re willing to sacrifice a pick in a loaded draft to do it.
The New York Knicks point guard is reportedly on the radar for multiple teams. This comes courtesy of ESPN’s Ian Begley, who acknowledges that Rose has been a poor defender and distributor for New York this season. He has, however, been excellent at driving to the basket.
You can watch Rose highlights and talk yourself into the idea of him helping a team. He’s still quicker than the average guard in transition, and he can contort his body and finish around the basket. He has made some clutch shots and even dunked a few times. When you look at his defense, though, or even just his relative lack of efficiency, it’s hard to see the appeal. It would be surprising if the Knicks could get much in return for Rose, especially with him hitting free agency in July.
Jahlil Okafor told SiriusXM NBA radio that he doesn’t know whether he’ll be traded, despite the fact that the Philadelphia 76ers held him out of a couple of games because they thought they were close to getting a deal done. Okafor rejoined the Sixers for their game against the Boston Celtics on Wednesday, which must have been pretty weird.
It would still be shocking if the big man remained on the roster past the deadline.
The Toronto Raptors might have already won the deadline by acquiring Serge Ibaka at the moment when they most desperately needed help. They could use a bit more wing depth and versatility, though, and president Masai Ujiri told reporters this week, “I still have my phone.â€
According to Doug Smith of the Toronto Star, the front office intends to hold onto young players Norman Powell, Lucas Nogueira, Delon Wright, Jakob Poeltl, Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet -- if there is a move to be made, it would likely involve Jared Sullinger’s expiring contract, Toronto’s other 2017 first-round draft pick or even point guard Cory Joseph.
Los Angeles Lakers guard Nick Young has seen his name mentioned in trade rumors for multiple reasons. Last year, it was because the Lakers reportedly just wanted to be rid of him; this year, it’s because he has played well and isn’t necessarily part of their long-term future. Right now, the rumors aren’t bothering him.
“When they talk about you in trades or being let go, there’s just so much negativity around, that’s bad,†Young said, via Tania Ganguli of the Los Angeles Times. “But when you’re doing good, and teams want you, they want to trade for you, that’s good. ‘He’s a valuable trade piece.’ That makes a total difference.â€