NBA Draft Rumors: Latest Trade Buzz at Beginning of Draft Week
We've reached the point of the 2015 NBA draft process when non-news (e.g. rumors) trumps actual information. Players may come in for last-second workouts for teams before Thursday night, but we're to the point every team generally has their strategy in place.
The only thing that can really change the draft outlook is a trade that in some way alters the scope of the first round. Odds are none of those deals will be completed until teams are on the clock. Teams will want to make sure their specific player is still on the board, which, I mean, duh. That's about as obvious as one can get.
What the rumor mill tells us is what picks might become available Thursday night in Brooklyn. Some early picks may take a massive haul to get the job done, while other late-rounders are being floated without much compensation. Even in the age when draft picks mean more than they ever have, it'll be interesting to see how teams with big free-agency designs choose to move forward.
With that in mind, let's check in quickly on the latest trade rumors buzzing around prior to the draft.
Celtics Want to Move Up, Draft Turner?
Well-equipped with future draft picks thanks to their Brooklyn fleecing, the Celtics have long been viewed as a candidate to push their way up in the first round. Their playoff run in 2014-15 was a welcome surprise, but it still puts them behind a bit of an 8-ball in their search for a foundational star. Not too many future Hall of Famers are around come pick No. 16.
While Boston is yet to find a taker, RealGM is reporting the team plans on targeting Texas big man Myles Turner if it can move up. Turner averaged 10.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game in his lone collegiate season. He's a perfect fit for the Celtics' needs, able to offer desperately desired rim protection while not mucking up space on the offensive end. Though it isn't a strength yet, Turner showed a willingness to stretch himself beyond the three-point arc.
Whether the Celtics will find a taker is another question entirely. They would probably prefer packaging the No. 28 pick along with No. 16 rather than dipping into their future assets pool. Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders noted Boston was already floating No. 28, anyway, so the prospect of killing two birds with one stone would be ideal.
If no team is willing to bite on the 16-28 package, then Danny Ainge needs to consider whether giving up an asset for a big available in the 10-14 range is really worth it. There is a reason Turner will probably fall outside the top 10 despite his vast skill set. Moving a future pick, whether it be theirs or a tasty Brooklyn choice, is a steep price to pay to move up a handful of spots.
Nothing to Lawson-Kings Talks?
Rumors have been floating since February that George Karl wants to reunite with Ty Lawson. Karl coached the jitterbug point guard in Denver, helping him develop from mid-round choice to borderline stardom. Nothing ever got done, as Karl took the Kings job too late to make any real roster moves, but speculation has carried over into the offseason.
One problem: Denver appears to value Lawson much more than the remainder of the NBA. ESPN's Chad Ford pointed out in a recent chat that the Nuggets have been trying to coax Sacramento into a Lawson-for-No. 6 swap. That would give Denver consecutive picks Thursday and get the engines revving on a rebuild that's a year or two too late.
The Kings have understandably balked at the price, citing, well, everything. Lawson's relationship with ex-Nuggets coach Brian Shaw has been nicely described as "rocky," furthering the point guard's reputation as an enigmatic personality who does his own thing. Karl has long thrived at mining the most possible talent out of those types of players, but dealing the sixth pick for a non-superstar player at the league's deepest position is nonsensical.
On that note, Bill Herenda of CSN California reported that there is "nothing brewing" on the Lawson trade talks. Sacramento would entertain the talks if the price drops a good amount, but it's hard to find a perfect asset match. Darren Collison plus Ben McLemore could work; I just don't know if I'd be willing to give up on a 22-year-old floor-spacer who made real strides in his second NBA season.
The separation between Collison and Lawson last season wasn't all that great. A metric like win shares greatly favored Lawson, while ESPN's Real Plus-Minus had them as highly similar players, with Collison actually winning out. Lawson's deficiencies on the defensive end are disconcerting, and RPM does a better job at grading defense for the most part than win shares.
This is a deal that will probably happen in July, if it happens at all.
Knicks Moving Back?
We've heard just about every top-10 player tangentially linked to the Knicks in one way, shape or form. The New York media has been covering this pick with the voracity of presidential-election coverage, which in turn has made it the most intriguing selection of the first round.
Will Phil Jackson prove his zen wisdom with an off-the-wall selection? Can he reconcile the boos that would surely come by taking a high-risk, high-reward player like Kristaps Porzingis? Will he trade the pick? Will an asteroid come down, blow up the Earth and save us all from this miserable existence?
All of it is in play.
The latest scuttlebutt has the Knicks leaning toward trading the No. 4 pick, especially if the top three consensus players—Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor and D'Angelo Russell—are off the board.
"If you're the Knicks, you're probably looking to deal the pick," a league source told Al Iannazzone of Newsday. "If I'm them, I'm actively looking to see what we can get for the pick. Actively."
That falls in line with recent trends, which have increasingly seen reporters make "trade" the odds-on favorite. The Knicks cannot trade their pick outright without receiving another in return, so the likeliest scenario remains them moving back a bit in the lottery and adding a veteran piece along the way.
Porzingis has generated enough attention around the league to make that a real possibility; he'd fit well in places like Detroit or Charlotte. The Pistons could offer Jodie Meeks or Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The Hornets have a ready-made trade piece in Gerald Henderson. Those players alone aren't enough to make the swap, but both have high second-rounders they could add to the mix to make things interesting.
Of course, we're looking at this from a Knicks perspective. It's unclear how much interest the Pistons or Hornets have in moving up. Their best move might be bluffing about taking Porzingis themselves and then holding him ransom in talks with Orlando, which would be doing backflips if the Latvian forward was available at No. 5.
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