With the exception of the Rockets and Mavericks, Monday will be media day across the NBA, and getting players in front of microphones will do much to get the NBA trade rumor mill rolling. Some sessions will matter more than others, and some figure to be huge because of the issues facing the team’s players, contracts and payrolls. That’s where NBA trade rumors are seeded.
Let’s start with the biggest fish, Nikola Jokic …
1. Denver Nuggets
It BEGINS. There are plenty of issues, but this will be all about Nikola Jokic. He will need to address his decision not to sign an extension, his fealty to the organization, how he feels about a team that has probably gone backwards, whether he would consider a trade if things slide further … This is one of the more important media days on the docket on Monday.
2. Detroit Pistons
The Pistons have been locked in a restricted free-agency battle with Duren all summer, and while it appears there is a fair deal on the table for him, Duren has yet to sign. Reports suggest that Duren’s unhappiness with Detroit goes beyond the finances of the thing, and represents a true break with the organization. The drama with Duren will begin at 2 pm, because it is not even clear the star big man will show up for media say.
3. Oklahoma City Thunder
Sam Presti has spoken, and that’s the most important part, but there is still much to be figured out with this team going forward. Cason Wallace needs a new contract, and whether he gets an extension will go a long way toward calibrating this team’s future. There’s also Jalen Williams’ healthy. But in the bigger sense, it will be interesting to get the view from the players on the second apron, how it already forced the team to deal off three players this offseason–and where they see things going down the line.
4. Los Angeles Clippers
It’s gonna be a mess in Clipper-land this season, and we’ll need to figure out who really wants to stick with the Clips and who might be seeking a trade if the team goes into rebuilding/pick replenishment mode. How bad is Brandon Ingram’s injury? Can he be traded? Does Darius Garland still make sense as a franchise cornerstone?
5. New York Knicks
Well, duh. The Knicks have been the talk of the NBA this week, and that’s been highlighted by the Karl-Anthony Towns contract issue. He needs an extension, the sides are far apart, and if he does not give the team enough of a discount, someone will have to be traded. How does the rest of the roster feel about that? Josh Hart also needs an extension, is he OK with being a backburner issue? Miles McBride is not happy that his situation has been ignored. Pacome Dadiet has been shopped, a lot, and even he is worth hearing from. Much to cover there.
Plenty of NBA Trade Rumor Material to Monitor
There are other big issues. Brandon Miller in Charlotte, Anthony Black in Orlando and Brandin Podziemski in Golden State are the big rookie extensions to monitor (in addition to Cason Wallace). Michael Porter Jr. will speak on his contract in Brooklyn. It will be worth knowing how Anthony Edwards feels about the remade Timberwolves.
The Hornets have already been a busy team on the trade market, and we can expect that to continue. Keep an eye on the Grizzlies, too. Will the Pelicans finally consider moving the likes of Trey Murphy and Zion Williamson? Will they be asked about it?
And one of the main attractions figures to be the Wizards’ Anthony Davis. Will he extend in Washington? Does he want out?
It all could have a bearing on the NBA trade rumor market. It should be a fun day. Oh, and here’s the Big Board.
NBA Trade Rumors: Guards Potentially on the Market
Let’s start the Big Board with the guards (and no, Stephen Curry is not being traded) …
De’Aaron Fox, Spurs. (Remaining contract: four years, $221 million). We’re putting De’Aaron Fox back on the board because though it will be tough to trade a guy with four years and $221 million on his upcoming contract, he does figure to crop back up in NBA trade rumors if, in fact, he plays well coming out of the gate. He does not have a long-term future in San Antonio, but he does have a long-term contract.
Kyrie Irving, Mavericks. (Remaining contract: two years, $82 million, player option in second year.) To be clear, nothing is imminent on a Kyrie Irving trade and there have not been active discussions on moving him. The guy is coming off a torn ACL, after all. Like a lot of veterans, the idea is to play him through January, build value and see if something can be done at the deadline. The Mavs won’t be afraid to keep him around, but they’re configuring the roster around youth.
Darius Garland, Clippers. (Remaining contract: two years, $87 million.) The Clippers are licking their wounds after the five-first-round-pick penalty from the Aspiration-Kawhi Leonard scandal settled in, and while it is not clear which path the team will take next–or the ramifications from the fact that their owner and GM are currently suspended–collecting draft picks and cap space would be a good idea. Garland is the only player on the roster who could potentially warrant a package of two first-rounders though his injury history would be an obstacle.
Dejounte Murray, Pelicans. (Remaining contract: two years, $63 million, player option.) Teams will want to see how he looks now that he should be fully healed from his Achilles tendon injury, but expect him to be a trade candidate as the deadline nears.
Jamal Murray, Nuggets. (Remaining contract; three years, $161 million.) Maybe? It’s not likely to happen now, but the finances in Denver are grim. It’s not hard to see a Jaylen Brown situation here. The Nuggets can continue to make changes around the margins, but with Nikola Jokic’s contract situation looming, they might need to do something drastic.
Mikal Bridges, Knicks. (Remaining contract: four years, $150 million.) It would make the most sense for the Knicks to trade Bridges if they seek payroll flexibility going forward, so we’ll slide him on this list. But the Knicks appear determined to try to hammer the team under the second apron for as long as it can stay there–there will be a breaking point, though, and the Karl-Anthony Towns extension is just the beginning.
Ty Jerome, Grizzlies. (Remaining contract: two years, $19 million, including player option.) Jerome took advantage of the mess in Memphis last year and averaged 19.7 points, shooting 42.0% from the 3-point line. The Grizzlies will need to thin out their roster, and the 29-year-old Jerome really does not fit here. He would have good value if Memphis wants to flip him for future assets, but the Grizz do not have much else at point guard.
Jalen Suggs, Magic. (Remaining contract: four years, $115 million, team option.) Suggs has been in the NBA five years, and had one good season as a two-way guard who could knock down 3s (2023-24, averaging 12.6 points and 39.7% 3-point shooting). Every other year in the league has been ugly and injury-riddled for Suggs. Unfortunately for the Magic, Suggs’ one good year was when he was up for an extension. We can’t rule out Paolo Banchero or Franz Wagner trades, but only if the season truly goes South.
Dalton Knecht, Lakers. (Remaining contract: two years, $10 million, including two team options.) Knecht showed some promise as a rookie but fell off in Year 2 and is now a contract filler in a potential trade. It has been surprising that no team has been willing to gamble on his upside–he is only 25.
Jaden Hardy, Lakers. (Remaining contract: one year, $6 million.) The Lakers need to drop a player, and Hardy is a good candidate if they can find a taker.
NBA Trade Rumors: Wing Candidates
Everybody needs wings, and good ones are hard to find …
Josh Hart, Knicks. (Remaining contract: two years, $43 million, team option.) Someone will have to go for the Knicks, and Hart would not be preferred, but he is possible. Given his contract and his overall usefulness, he would have plenty of takers.
OG Anunoby, Knicks. (Remaining contract: three years, $136 million, player option.) If someone has to go from the Knicks to make the finances work under the second apron, Anunoby would be the third least likely to do so–he showed his versatility and value during the playoffs. But he would also be the most desirable possible trade candidate on the Knicks roster, giving them a chance to recoup their losses and add assets. Longshot, but not impossible.
Brandon Ingram, Raptors/Clippers. (Remaining contract: two years, $82 million, player option.) The Clippers should be seeking to do what they can to pile up draft picks, and moving off of Brandon Ingram next offseason could fetch them one. But he had offseason foot surgery, and it remains to be seen how that will affect him.
Moses Moody, Warriors. (Remaining contract: two years, $26 million.) Moody is potentially going to be ready for the start of the season, and is said to be staying put. But if the Warriors do anything trade-wise this summer, speculation holds it will involve Moody.
Trey Murphy, Pelicans. (Remaining contract: three years, $88 million.) There have been rumblings that the Pelicans would deal Murphy, and equal rumblings have indicated they won’t. Murphy is a favorite in NBA trade rumors, but New Orleans is slow-playing any potential trade.
Saddiq Bey, Pelicans. (Remaining contract: one year, $6.5 million.) Bey came back with a strong season last year after tearing his ACL, averaging 17.7 points and shooting 45.1% from the field and 36.7% from the 3-point line. They were hollow numbers on a bad team, but he showed he still could be an adequate wing off someone’s bench.
Michael Porter Jr., Nets. (Remaining contract: one year, $40 million, partial guarantee.) Michael Porter Jr. (Remaining contract: one year, $40 million, partial guarantee.) Assuming the Nets’ contract talks do not reignite with Porter, he will be a top trade focus all winter. His extension talks appear to be faltering. He is a fringe All-Star, though, and is seeking to be paid like one. If the Nets do not want to go too far on a contract, the question would be whether another team would.
Derrick Jones Jr., Clippers. (Remaining contract: one year, $10 million.) Jones is a defensive ace still, and his expiring contract gives the Clippers some wiggle room to move him. They’re caught in the Aspiration pause, however.
Kyle Kuzma, Bucks. (Remaining contract: one year, $20 million,) His expiring contract is attractive and if the Bucks pull a sign-and-trade for Peyton Watson, Bennedict Mathurin or Jonathan Kuminga, he could be involved.
DeAndre Hunter, Kings. (Remaining contract: one year, $25 million.) The Kings want to keep him as an expiring contract they could potentially flip, but he’s being mentioned as a possible target. If Sacto can get back an asset without taking long-term money, he could be dealt at the deadline.
Royce O’Neale, Hornets. (Remaining contract: two years, $21 million,) The Hornets still have some sorting to do. O’Neale is not a long-term piece, of course, but he has value. The team could hang onto him, see how he fits and flip him at the deadline.
Jake LaRavia, Lakers. (Remaining contract: one year, $6 million.) Hustles, plays every game, but inconsistent. His contract makes him an attractive piece, though, as the Lakers are still figuring out the back end of their roster.
Herb Jones, Pelicans. (Remaining contract: four years, $82 million, including player option.) Jones is a popular name on the market, but the Pelicans are said to want two first-round picks, and with Jones having struggled with injuries and his 3-point shot in the past two seasons, that’s too steep. His remaining contract scares off potential suitors, too.
Cam Johnson, Nuggets. (Remaining contract: one year, $23 million.) The Peyton Watson move probably means Johnson stays put, but he will be very tradeable in the coming months before the deadline. Johnson struggled in his lone season in Denver, and he has been a prominent feature on the NBA trade rumor mill for years now. But teams wanted the Nuggets to include picks in a Johnson deal, and that was not happening. He still has enough of a reputation around the league to warrant trade interest, but the apron-addled Nuggets value the fact that he has an expiring contract. They need that space for Nikola Jokic next summer.
PJ Washington, Mavericks. (Remaining contract: 4 years, $90 million.) Like Daniel Gafford, Washington is aging out of the Mavericks’ timeline, as he turns 28 this summer. He’s a stretch 4 who plays good defense, but his shooting has been suspect–he made just 32.5% of his 3s last year. Like Gafford, they’re hoping to get a first-round pick in a deal for him, but the contract is prohibitive and the production is not worth it.
NBA Trade Rumors: Center/Power Forward Candidates
And of course, there are the big guys on the NBA trade rumor mill …
Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks. (Remaining contract: two years, $118 million, player option.) It is a very slim chance that the guy who takes the fall for the Knicks’ unwillingness to go into the second apron will be Towns–he is too valuable. His contract extension, though, could be the catalyst for a major Knicks trade, and we can’t rule out the possibility that Towns himself will be on the move for the right package.
Paolo Banchero, Magic. (Remaining contract: five years, $245 million, player option.) Good luck finding a taker for that deal. But if the Magic continue to flop, he will be a big name on the NBA trade rumor mill.
Jalen Smith, Bulls. (Remaining contract: one year, $9.4 million.) We had Patrick Williams here in a previous version of this list, and it would be a symbolic flush of the old era for new GM Bryson Graham to dump Williams, but no one is taking on that three-year, $54 million deal. There has been interest in Smith, and the Bulls could cash in on him as the season gets rolling and teams clearly have big man needs.
Nikola Jovic, Heat. (Remaining contract: four years, $62 million.) There is trepidation about trading for Jovic, who is certainly available and is still only 23 years old. But the remaining contract is a hefty bite for teams to take.
Grant Williams, Hornets. (Remaining contract: one year, $15 million.) The Hornets are not quite done with their roster, and Williams’ expiring deal has some value. He can still be a worthy big man off the bench.
Zeke Nnaji, Nuggets. (Remaining contract: four years, $32 million.) The Nuggets shopped Nnaji this summer, but there were no takers. He does not have a weighty contract, but four years is lengthy for him.
Obi Toppin, Pacers. (Remaining contract: two years, $31 million.) A foot injury torpedoed his season last year, and even when healthy, he’s a bench player who give you about 18 minutes a night. The Pacers will likely do something to get themselves under the luxury tax, either now or at the deadline.
Jarred Vanderbilt, Lakers. (Remaining contract: two years, $26 million.) The Lakers have been trying to find a taker for Vanderbilt, but no one has been eager to take on his contract. So, the question is what to do with him now? Most likely, the Lakers will keep Vanderbilt in the rotation and attempt to rehabilitate his value, with an eye on trading him at the deadline or next summer. There could be smaller Lakers moves coming–Dalton Knecht and/or Jaden Hardy–but Vanderbilt is the guy they’d like to move.
Aaron Gordon, Nuggets. (Remaining contract: three years, $110 million.) The Nuggets will have a second-apron crunch next year, as has been well documented. That is one reason they did not want to move off the expiring contract of Cam Johnson this summer, and probably won’t do so this season–they value the $23 million Johnson will leave behind when he hits free agency. The Nuggets plan to give Nikola Jokic a $360 million extension next summer, but they’re going to need more flexibility. Dealing Gordon could do it, though his contract and health issues make that difficult.
Daniel Gafford, Mavericks. (Remaining contract: 3 years, $54 million.) Gafford will be 28 in October, and with the Mavs focused on getting younger, moving him along has been one of the team’s goals.
NBA Trade Rumors: Nikola Jokic, Jalen Duren and the 5 Most Important Media Days