NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz on DeMarcus Cousins, Brooklyn Nets and More
While the Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors battle through what has been a classic NBA Finals thus far, the NBA's other 28 teams are well into the roster construction planning phase of their offseason. With the tightly condensed calendar placing the draft and free agency right next to each other, now is when front offices plant the seeds for the imminent bloom of transactions.
It's also a unique time in that this is the only period where we see trade rumors intersect to include both veterans and upcoming draft picks. The two are often packaged together, of course, but now that we know the draft order and prospect projections, those draft picks often have a precise name attached to them.
Let's take a look at some of the biggest names and picks on the block at the moment, while also keeping in mind the amount of smoke screens that fly around at this time of year.
Boston Wants to Boogie
Despite its overachieving playoff run, the Boston Celtics are still in the relatively early stages of their rebuild. Yes, Brad Stevens' crew has a foundation in place that could allow the C's to ascend to the Eastern Conference's middle class, but first- and second-round exits aren't the standard for a franchise with 17 banners.
Thus, it's no surprise to hear the Celtics bantered about in every All-Star trade rumor, much like they were last summer with Kevin Love. Though the Sacramento Kings have professed a longstanding disinterest in trading away center DeMarcus Cousins, CSNNE reporter Greg Dickerson still believes that Boston GM Danny Ainge will go all-in for the 7-footer:
With six first-rounders likely to transfer between the next two drafts, Boston has no shortage of draft capital to offer. Moreover, because the current roster is mostly a mishmash of role players on temporary deals, virtually every player on the roster is up for grabs, perhaps including 2014 sixth overall pick Marcus Smart.
Dickerson also suggested that a key member of last year's squad is on the trade block, though not necessarily in direct conjunction with a Cousins deal:
In this instance, though, it's hard to believe that Sacramento would simply accept more picks for the one player it has developed reasonably well.
The Kings' past two first-rounders, Nik Stauskas and Ben McLemore, have gotten off to inauspicious starts to their careers. Apart from Cousins, Sacramento's best players by player efficiency rating last year were veterans Rudy Gay and Darren Collison, according to Basketball-Reference, highlighting the lack of young upside on the current roster.
Given that track record, it's not clear why Sacramento would trust their ability to replace Cousins' impact with draft picks. Their hiring of veteran head coach George Karl feels like an attempt to add stability to the league's most volatile franchise over the past half-decade. Trading away Cousins certainly wouldn't jibe with that ostensible mission.
Cutting Down the Nets?
Management's decision to go all-in with veteran acquisitions the past three seasons has backfired disastrously on the Brooklyn Nets. After a wholly uninspiring 38-44 season, the fiscally reprobate Nets appear on the verge of a tear down involving their All-Star backcourt, per Basketball Insiders' Steve Kyler:
"There is a sense that the Nets don’t want much of anything in return for [Joe] Johnson or [Deron] Williams in trade and given the amount of cap space some teams will have in July, both become interesting trade options, especially if the acquiring teams can swap a slightly smaller contract for one of the whoppers that Brooklyn is holding onto.
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Joe Johnson's $24.9 million expiring contract could actually be an appealing trade chip for a team with a big trade exemption looking to shed salary, like the aforementioned Celtics or Denver Nuggets.
Johnson's productivity has cratered in three seasons as a Net, and his 14.4 points-per-game average was his lowest output since 2002-03. Given that he hasn't fared well with fewer touches, though, it's unclear if Johnson can adapt to a complementary bench scoring role in the twilight years of his career.
Deron Williams is a thornier case, given that he still has $43.4 million remaining on his contract, including a massive $22.3 million 2016 player option he'll surely exercise. There's been some thought that Brooklyn could use its stretch provision to rid themselves of the perpetually injured point guard, but general manager Billy King has shot down those suggestions, according to Newsday's Al Iannazzone:
That's probably the healthier long-term choice, given the massive tax penalties the Nets have accumulated in this ill-conceived push for contention. Apart from big men Brook Lopez and Mason Plumlee, no player appears safe for the long run. King may be around to survive his missteps, but he'll need to hit all the right notes in the draft to rebuild Brooklyn with cost-controlled talent.
Pistons Trying to Move?
The Detroit Pistons have been stuck in a mediocre stasis since the turn of the decade, and the team handed plenty of unilateral power over to Stan Van Gundy last year to turn that around. In his second draft, Van Gundy might be ready to make a bigger move, based on whisperings in the latest mock draft of ESPN's Chad Ford.
Ford suggested that "the Pistons' pick is being shopped around, though Detroit might be better off just holding onto it." Detroit doesn't have any additional future draft capital apart from a couple of extra second-round picks, so any move up the board would likely involve their own future first-rounder. That's a dicey proposition for the annually lottery-bound Pistons, though protections could obviously stop them from transferring a premium pick.
Apart from Josh Smith's onerous dead hits over the next two years, the Pistons have no big salaries on their books, assuming that Greg Monroe departs in free agency. That would seemingly point toward a potential veteran acquisition, assuming that Detroit is seeking to claw back into playoff contention. Their February trade for Reggie Jackson would seemingly point in that direction, though the team is fairly young overall.
Regardless, any player the Pistons take at pick No. 8 would likely be a high-ceiling developmental type like Mario Hezonja, or a high-floor player without as much projectability like Frank Kaminsky. It seems as though Van Gundy is swinging for a bigger prize to inject some excitement into a franchise that has stagnated after a terrific run in the 2000s.
