NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Speculation Going into Trade Deadline

We are a week away from the NBA's March 15 trade deadline.

That means more than a handful of teams are under the gun as they decide whether to become buyers or sellers in the upcoming days.

The rumors are going to build up even more in the upcoming days, but we aren't without our share of stars to talk about right now.

Let's take a quick look at the latest speculation concerning potential deals around the NBA.

Chicago Bulls Could Stand Pat

While the injury to shooting guard Richard Hamilton is a concern, don't look for the Bulls to do a whole lot at the deadline, if anything at all.

That would be just fine with head coach Tom Thibodeau.

"If we don't do anything, we feel very good about the people we have," Thibodeau said to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.. "We feel depth is one of our strengths, and we have more than enough to win with."

Jamal Crawford on the Move?

It looks as if Minnesota and Portland are discussing a deal involving Crawford and Wolves point guard Luke Ridnour, as ESPN's Chad Ford reported yesterday.

While Crawford could be the missing piece that gets Minnesota back to the playoffs, they aren't the only team hot after the veteran shooting guard.

Ford also added that the Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Clippers are making a play for Crawford, and while Minnesota is viewed as the favorite at the moment, the Pacers are under the cap, so they won't have to worry about sending Portland salary to make a deal.

Little Interest in Boston's Big Three

It's no secret that Danny Ainge has shopped point guard Rajon Rondo and Boston's Big Three, but according to Steve Bulpret of the Boston Herald, there's very little interest around the NBA in any of the Boston stars.

That's fine with head coach Doc Rivers, though, as he sees the team standing pat at the trade deadline, telling the Boston Globe's Gary Washburn the following:

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"I'm sure there will be more rumors, there's nothing you can do about that," Rivers said. "We pretty much know what we want to do.... Like I said a week ago, I'd be surprised if we did anything. Obviously, if we find someone out there who wants to give us a player, we'll take them."

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Washburn also says that the Celtics won't be dealing the expiring contracts of Ray Allen or Kevin Garnett for young players with uncertain futures.

Ramon Sessions to Los Angeles Lakers?

In Steve Kyler's report today for HoopsWorld, he suggests that the Cavs aren't looking for a huge return for Sessions.

A draft pick likely gets the deal done.

Kyler suggests that the Lakers are the front-runners still for Sessions, but they are holding out for bigger fish.

The Lakers are considered the front-runner for Sessions, although the Lakers still have their eye on a bigger fish, like Orlando’s Dwight Howard or Boston’s Rajon Rondo—although both are extreme long shots.

Once it becomes clear that the major piece the Lakers are targeting cannot be obtained, moving on a Sessions deal seems likely, unless someone else swoops in with a better offer for the Cavs, which is always possible in the march to the deadline.

Dwight Howard Saga

There's nothing new on the Dwight Howard front that hasn't been reported all week, but Orlando Magic general manager Otis Smith said that a decision likely won't be made until the last few minutes of the deadline.

Despite Howard's newest stance that he's not made up his mind about his future, what is clear is that Howard has no clue what he exactly wants and that this situation will likely be unresolved right up until the very last minute.

Orlando Magic

Trying to put the Howard distraction aside, Smith is still trying to bring in a piece or two to convince Howard to stay.

Smith recently told teams to not bother calling unless they are offering a big piece to help him keep Howard.

The problem is that every team that calls is only going to include a star in a deal in order to acquire Howard.

Given Orlando's salary-cap situation and the lack of quality trade assets outside of Howard, the chance of Orlando acquiring a big piece is very slim.

New Jersey Nets

Despite the injury to Brook Lopez, who was viewed as the key piece in any potential Dwight Howard deal, New Jersey general manager Billy King says the Nets will still look to be active before next Thursday's deadline passes.

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“You’re always active. Whether you get something done or not, that’s the thing. It’s our jobs as GMs to make phone calls, and people call you.

"Will we do something? I don’t know. I’m not actively trying to break the thing up and retool. If you can add the right pieces that you like going forward, we’ll do that,” King told Fred Kerber of the New York Post.

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Even if the Nets can't swing a deal for Howard, they have a lot of pieces that could interest other teams.

There are plenty of expiring contracts to go around in New Jersey.

Mehmet Okur ($10.9 million), Kris Humphries ($8.0 million), DeShawn Stevenson ($2.5 million) and Damion James ($1.24 million) all have expiring deals, as do Sundiata Gaines and Shelden Williams, who are both sub-million players ($854,389).

Evan Turner

We are used to hearing Andre Iguodala's name tied to trade rumors this time of year, but that's not the case this season, as even though he's got a big contract it looks like the Sixers have a choice to make.

It seems they've made that choice, and it looks like Evan Turner could be the odd man out—at least according to John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News.

Smallwood suggests that Sixers management is sticking by Iguodala for the future and that Turner's days in Philadelphia could be numbered.

With Philadelphia dropping back to the bottom in the east after a great start, they could be dangling Turner as bait in an attempt to improve.

Derrick Favors

According to Fox Sports Ohio's Sam Amico, the Utah Jazz are shopping power forward Derrick Favors, who was the big piece of the Deron Williams trade last year.

That means less than two years after they were selected as the No. 2 and No. 3 overall picks in the NBA draft, both Turner and Favors are being shopped.

For Utah, it appears as if they are dangling Favors out there in an attempt to acquire a point guard or shooting guard.

Josh Smith

While the Hawks say they aren't looking to move anyone, ESPN's Chad Ford reports that the Hawks have been shopping Smith for some time now.

His feeling is that a deal gets done if the Celtics offer up Rondo or the Phoenix Suns offer up Steve Nash.

Monta Ellis

Ellis is one of the NBA's best scorers, but the Golden State Warriors desperately needs a big man in the worst way.

But Ford also writes that while most GMs aren't winning to deal big for small, if the Warriors would part with Ellis for New York's Amar'e Stoudemire or potentially to Atlanta for Smith, then a possible deal could get done by Thursday.