In case anyone was wondering, it is officially NBA trade rumor season. The NBA trade deadline is February 8th at three p.m., and teams will fall into two categories: buyers and sellers. There are a plethora of players who are likely to be traded.<\/p>\n
On one side, teams are looking to trade valuable assets to playoff contenders for future assets and draft picks. These are the sellers. On the other side, playoff contenders are looking for that one trade piece to put them over the top. These are the buyers.<\/p>\n
Instead of doing a normal “Who are the buyers and who are the sellers at the trade deadline?” column (here’s a great piece<\/a> by the SB Nation crew you should check out), I thought it would be fun to dive into each team’s roster and salary cap and find which players are the most likely to be traded.<\/p>\n Disclaimer<\/em>: “most likely to be traded” 100% does not<\/strong><\/em> equal “will be traded”, and some teams did not have obvious tradeable pieces. Others had to have “honorable mention” sections because there was more than one candidate.<\/p>\n Dewayne Dedmon<\/a> –\u00a0<\/strong>’17\/18 stats – 10.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $6 million this year, player option for $6.3 million in ’18-19<\/p>\n The Hawks are obvious sellers at the trade deadline this year. Dedmon gets the nod because he could be a helpful addition to any playoff team needing to bolster their front-court. He is a productive two-way center who has flashed legitimate three-point range in the ATL (16-for-42, 38%).<\/p>\n Teams like the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers should really inquire about the Southern Cal product. Dedmon will come at a much cheaper trade price than big-name centers DeAndre Jordan<\/a><\/strong> and Marc Gasol<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Honorable Mentions: Kent Bazemore<\/a><\/strong>, Marco Belinelli<\/a><\/strong>, Ersan Ilyasova<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Marcus Morris<\/a><\/strong> – ’17\/18 stats – 11.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $5 million this year, $5.4 million for ’18-19<\/p>\n Here is the thing: unless a young mega-star like the Pelicans Anthony Davis<\/a><\/strong> is on the market (hint, he is not this season), the Celtics are unlikely to make a trade. Perched atop the Eastern Conference, the team is in a great spot even after the horrific Gordon Hayward<\/a><\/strong> injury on opening night.<\/p>\n After combing through their roster, the only player who might be on the move is their Morris twin. He is still trying to work his way back into the rotation in his first Boston campaign after an early-season injury.<\/p>\n With the emergence of young studs Jaylen Brown<\/a><\/strong> and Jayson Tatum<\/a><\/strong>, the front office may look to move Morris to obtain more front-court depth.<\/p>\n Joe Harris<\/a><\/strong> – ’17\/18 stats – 10.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $1.5 million this year, unrestricted free agent this summer<\/p>\n Playoff teams can never have enough shooting.<\/p>\n In Brooklyn, Harris is taking five threes a game and draining them at a 39 percent clip. His prolific shooting should make contenders in need of another bench scorer give GM Sean Marks<\/a> and the Nets a call.<\/p>\n Slot Harris into a bench role on a contender, and maybe he gets hot and gets you a win. It is well worth the small price you would pay to extract him from Brooklyn.<\/p>\n Kemba Walker<\/a><\/strong> – ’17\/18 stats – 21.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $12 million this year and ’18-19<\/p>\n This one is hard. There was a #WojBomb dropped on Friday\u00a0<\/a>saying that the Hornets were open to moving their franchise star. Also, check out this Last Word piece<\/a> from over a week ago (by yours truly) about the future in Charlotte.<\/p>\n Walker is one of the biggest names on the trading block this season. The electric guard from UCONN is an all-star caliber point guard that will help any team that trades for him. The catch here is that one of the honorable mentions below (on a horrible contract) is probably the price for getting an under-paid Walker.<\/p>\n For some interesting trade ideas involving Walker, check out this piece<\/a> from Bleacher Report.<\/p>\n Honorable Mentions: Dwight Howard<\/a>, Marvin Williams<\/a>, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist<\/a>, Nicolas Batum<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Nikola Mirotic<\/a><\/strong> – ’17\/18 stats – 17.7 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $12.5 million this year and a club option for the same figure in ’18-19<\/p>\n After missing time due to having his face broken<\/a> by teammate Bobby Portis<\/a><\/strong>, Mirotic has been an inferno from downtown (45.7% on 6.4 attempts per game). His 17.7 points per game lead the Bulls and is Mirotic’s career best by over six points.<\/p>\n Teams like the Detroit Pistons and Utah Jazz are interested in making a trade for the sweet-shooting forward, per reports. He would slot in well in Detroit, spacing the floor next to a traditional center (cc: Andre Drummond<\/a><\/strong>).<\/p>\n Iman Shumpert<\/a><\/strong> – ’17\/18 stats – 4.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists<\/p>\n Contract: $10.3 million this year, $11 million player option next year<\/p>\n The Cavs are trying to trade for everybody<\/a>. This tweet from J.E. Skeets (NBA TV’s “The Starters”) really sums up the situation:<\/p>\n The Cavaliers are pursuing separate deals for Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Shaq, Jesus Shuttlesworth and Air Bud in advance of the Feb. 8 trade deadline, according to my sources.<\/p>\n — J.E. Skeets (@jeskeets) January 20, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nAtlanta Hawks<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
Boston Celtics<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
Brooklyn Nets<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
Charlotte Hornets<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
Chicago Bulls<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
Cleveland Cavaliers<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n
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