Predicting the Next Wave of NBA Trade Block Names
The 2024 NBA trade deadline featured a lot of names that popped up in rumors, regardless of whether or not they actually ended up actually switching teams.
We'll see a lot of these same players likely resurface this summer (Dejounte Murray, Zach LaVine, Kyle Kuzma, Malcolm Brogdon, Bruce Brown, etc.), and a new group will like join them.
Don't be surprised if the following seven players also become available in trade chatter this offseason after (largely) dodging rumors to this point.
Jakob Poeltl, C, Toronto Raptors
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Poeltl could be the next Raptor to hit the trade market after Pascal Siakam and OG Anunoby were moved before this year's deadline. The 28-year-old center was re-signed last summer with the intent of joining a core of both stars—a plan that has since been scrapped.
Toronto has undergone a bit of a youth movement with the additions of RJ Barrett, Immanuel Quickley and Ochai Agbaji as they look to build around Scottie Barnes. Adding shooting was a priority as well with the addition of Toronto native Kelly Olynyk. The Raptors will almost certainly re-sign Olynyk this summer after giving up one of the three first-round picks they acquired in the Siakam trade to get him. He's also logged 21 minutes or more in three of his first five games.
Poeltl has two guaranteed years remaining on his contract at $19.5 million per season and carries a $19.5 million player option in 2026-27, so his deal should be fairly easy to move. A huge target in the middle who excels at rebounding and is a talented passer and defender, Poeltl is still a starting-caliber center who does almost everything well except space the floor.
With the Raptors resetting the roster, Poeltl could be the next to go.
Keldon Johnson, F, San Antonio Spurs
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It wasn't long ago that Johnson looked like the Spurs' best player, signing a four-year, $74 million contract to serve as the potential face of the franchise.
Of course, winning the No. 1 overall pick in 2023 and the right to select Victor Wembanyama has altered those plans. Giving Devin Vassell a five-year, $135 million contract pointed toward a diminished role for Johnson moving forward as well.
While he began the season as a starter, Johnson has come off the bench since Dec. 23, struggling in his new role. The 24-year-old was averaging 17.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists on 47.0 percent shooting overall (35.3 percent from three) in 26 games as a starter, numbers that have since fallen to 15.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists on 43.2 percent shooting (31.1 percent from three) in 27 games as a reserve.
The Spurs will once again be adding a top draft pick this summer and still need to find minutes for guys like Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham, Blake Wesley and others to develop.
Johnson could become the odd man out in San Antonio.
Jordan Clarkson, G, Utah Jazz
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The Jazz made the surprising move to keep Clarkson at the trade deadline despite the team seeming destined to fall out of the West play-in picture.
There could have been a financial reason for this, however.
While Utah used some of their 2023-24 cap space to give Clarkson a raise, his $23.5 million salary this year falls all the way to $14.1 million in 2024-25 with another reasonable $14.3 million coming the season after.
This should make the 31-year-old guard far easier to trade simply from a salary-matching standpoint.
After beginning the season in the starting lineup, Clarkson has returned to a sixth-man role since Dec. 23, paving the way for Collin Sexton, Keyonte George and others to get more playing time. Over his past 13 games, however, Clarkson is shooting just 39.4 percent overall and 22.9 percent from three on a healthy 5.4 attempts.
Barring a big trade, the Jazz won't be ready to go on a playoff run anytime soon. Moving Clarkson to a contender is probably something that should have been done at the deadline and will almost certainly be orchestrated this summer.
Naz Reid, C, Minnesota Timberwolves
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The Timberwolves certainly won't want to trade Reid, arguably the best backup center in the NBA, although an increasingly-expensive roster may force them to do so.
With a max deal kicking in for Anthony Edwards ($35.3 million), Karl-Anthony Towns jumping up to a super max ($49.4 million) and Jaden McDaniels getting a healthy raise as well ($22.6 million), the Wolves are already at a projected $185.7 million in salary for 2024-45. This not only puts them into the luxury tax, but it also gets Minnesota dangerously close to the projected second apron ($190 million).
Assuming the Wolves aren't going to part with Edwards, Towns, Rudy Gobert or McDaniels, Reid ($13.9 million) is the next most expensive player on the roster.
Teams would be lining up to take on Reid's remaining contract while offering draft assets for the 24-year-old center, a move that would get Minnesota back down close to the luxury tax line.
Moving Reid may be necessary for a Timberwolves team that will want to avoid being a second-apron team.
Jalen Green, SG, Houston Rockets
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Green once looked like he could be the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft, a scoring machine who ended up going second overall to Houston.
While Green appeared to be on the path to becoming a future All-Star with the Rockets, some offseason free-agent spending and the emergence of Alperen Şengün has forced the third-year guard to take a step back in both role and production.
Şengün now looks like the face of the franchise moving forward, establishing himself as the Rockets' leading scorer over Green. Both are eligible for contract extensions this offseason, with a new deal for Jabari Smith Jr. potentially coming the summer after. The Rockets also need minutes and shots for Amen Thompson, Cam Whitmore and Tari Eason to develop.
Adding in a proven point guard like Fred VanVleet should have at least helped make Green more efficient, although the 22-year-old is shooting a career-low 40.7 percent overall and 30.9 percent from three. He's taking more three-pointers and getting to the free-throw line less compared to last season as well.
The Rockets want to win now, yet are a whopping 8.4 points per 100 possessions worse with Green on the floor this season.
If contract talks between Green and Houston break down this offseason, a trade may be best for both parties.
Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks
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While most of the trade-deadline chatter surrounding the Hawks focused on Dejounte Murray, there's no guarantee that Young will be back in Atlanta, either.
At 24-32, the Hawks simply haven't put together a good enough team around Young and have only regressed since making the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021. The All-Star point guard has just two guaranteed years remaining on his contract, something the Hawks may want to take advantage of and trade Young as soon as possible before his value goes down closer to free agency.
Keeping Murray was a surprise, although not if Atlanta is already entertaining the thought of trading Young. A former All-Star himself, Murray could take over full-time floor general duties once again if Young is traded for a wing or big.
A fierce competitor, Young has to be frustrated with back-to-back first-round losses and now the likelihood that his team misses the playoffs altogether.
Whether it be a request by Young or the Hawks simply realizing that the franchise is stuck and in need of a major shakeup, don't be surprised if the 25-year-old is moved this summer.
Deandre Ayton, C, Portland Trail Blazers
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Getting Ayton as part of the Damian Lillard trade was a worthwhile gamble for the rebuilding Blazers, as the former No. 1 overall pick was supposed to break out without having to share the ball with Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
Instead, Ayton's scoring has actually fallen to a career-low 14.3 points per game while the 25-year-old hasn't attempted a single three-pointer all season. In a season that should have been built around growth, we've seen regression from Ayton.
His production simply doesn't align with his contract, as only Nikola Jokić, Joel Embiid, Anthony Davis and Rudy Gobert are making more per year than Ayton among centers.
The Trail Blazers should be getting Robert Williams III back from knee surgery next season, a far better defender than Ayton who only makes about a third of the money ($34 million compared to $12.4 million).
Portland should shop Ayton, clear some future cap space and move forward with Williams as their starting center instead.
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