NBA Rumors: Analyzing Latest Buzz on Tobias Harris, Tayshaun Prince and More
With the NBA trade deadline less than a month away, teams are trying to act fast to get whatever open business they have wrapped up in the next few weeks.
In addition, with the regular season past the halfway point, some players, especially those not on contending teams, are giving more thought as to what they'll do in the offseason as free agents.
The NBA rumor mill is already working overtime.
Below are updates on three players whose futures remain up in the air.
Tobias Harris
Tobias Harris will be one of the more interesting free-agent cases to watch this year. He'll be a restricted free agent in the summer, so the Orlando Magic will be able to match any offer sheet.
Of course, that's far from a guarantee Orlando will be able to re-sign him.
According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, the 22-year-old is eyeing up the New York Knicks as his next destination:
"Harris has a big summer ahead, electing to become a restricted free agent rather than signing Orlando's four-year, $36 million extension offer. A source told The Post in November the Knicks are tops on his list.
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Thursday night, a close friend of Harris told The Post, "He wants to win a championship with the Knicks."
It makes some sense Harris would want a move to the Knicks. He's from Islip, New York and graduated from high school at Half Hollow Hills in Dix Hills, New York. Most importantly, the Knicks have a ton of money either coming off the books or already off for the summer.
Also worth noting is the Magic forward would also receive more money from Nike if he plays for a team in Chicago, Los Angeles or New York, per Josh Newman of SNY.tv.
Generally, Harris is the kind of player whom New York would be smart to target in the offseason.
The Knicks aren't going to land a marquee free agent like Marc Gasol after the debacle that is their 2014-15 season, but they'd be smart to throw an above-market offer sheet or two at somebody like Harris, Jimmy Butler, Draymond Green or Kawhi Leonard.
Who knows? Maybe New York throws a max deal at Butler and the notoriously frugal Chicago Bulls decide it's too much. The team could also pay a little bit extra for somebody like Harris or Green, making it tough for the Magic or Golden State Warriors to match.
Either way, the Knicks need to use their cap space to their advantage in the offseason.
With all that said, with Carmelo Anthony locked up for the long term, New York might be better off not investing heavily in another combo forward.
Tayshaun Prince
As soon as Tayshaun Prince joined the Boston Celtics, it seemed a strong possibility he'd be moved again before the trade deadline.
The Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett reported the Celtics are still looking to trade the 34-year-old forward:
"According to league sources, the Celts would still like to move Prince for a draft pick before the Feb. 19 NBA trade deadline. But it's what could happen if he's not dealt that may be up for more discussion in the coming days.
There was strong word that if Prince wasn't moved by the deadline that the Celtics would seek agreement with him on a buyout of this final year of his contract (he makes a bit more than $7.2 million).
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Bulpett also wrote Boston isn't against the idea of keeping Prince around in what would be a glorified mentor role. He'd impart some of his vast basketball knowledge onto the young players, setting the Celtics up a little more for the long term:
"And there is also the need to develop the young players on hand, and the C's believe it's important to have that happen in an environment where the club is competitive. (Brad) Stevens believes Prince can help in this regard, both with his talent and leadership.
"I think there's no question about that, but also there's the fact that he's a veteran who knows how to," the coach said. "The other thing is he just has such great poise and presence."
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Although Prince isn't exactly pulling up any trees this year—7.1 points a game—veterans like him certainly have a certain amount of utility, especially on a team like the Celtics.
One of the problems rebuilding teams run into is the younger players start picking up bad habits because their team isn't competitive on a nightly basis, and a premium isn't necessarily placed on winning games.
You saw that with the Cleveland Cavaliers this year after LeBron James and Kevin Love arrived. Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters in particular struggled early on with the Cavaliers' quick adjustment to being a title contender. They needed to change their styles a bit after having the run of the place in the last few years.
Having a guy like Prince around might ensure Marcus Smart and James Young don't lose sight of the bigger picture.
Brendan Haywood
Speaking of the Cavs, Cleveland may finally move Brendan Haywood. Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal reported the team could use the veteran center as a trade chip before the deadline:
"There have been whispers throughout the season the Cavs may trade Brendan Haywood’s unique contract before this summer, when it reaches its maximum value. Those whispers are growing louder. In fact, if the Cavs are to upgrade their backup point guard position through trade, they will inevitably have to include Haywood just to make the money match. And from all indications, they’ll have no problem moving Haywood’s contract if the right point guard becomes available. But they won’t know that until closer to the Feb. 19 trade deadline.
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Haywood is set to make $10,522,500 in 2015-16, but none of that is guaranteed if he's waived before Aug. 1.
Back in November, Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group wrote why teams would actually love to trade for Haywood:
"What's attractive about Haywood's deal is next summer his $10.5 million income would apply towards the league's salary-matching requirements, which would allow the Cavaliers, or whichever team has him at that time, to trade Haywood for an impact player making up to approximately $14 million annually.
The team that receives Haywood could release the big man and gain significant cap space equivalent to the $10.5 million figure. There's the value.
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While it's clear the Cavaliers are doing everything they can to win right now, holding on to Haywood until the summer seems to make more sense for Cleveland. The benefits of waiting appear to outweigh whatever assets the team could get if it dealt him right now.
Following the trades for J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Timofey Mozgov, the Cavs are beginning to look like a more complete team. They beat the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on Sunday by double digits.
They can afford to be patient and get the maximum value out of Haywood's contract situation.
