NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz Surrounding Ricky Rubio, Enes Kanter
The madness that is the NBA's free-agency period is officially underway, and it's expected to move some superstars to new homes for the 2016-17 season.
But there are also plenty of rumors circling the league's trade market, which could make a splash of its own this summer.
One name that's been coming up for some time now is Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio, who was made available before the NBA draft, per Sporting News' Sean Deveney.
He became even more expendable when the team selected Kris Dunn fifth overall on draft night, as he's considered the new point guard of the future.
But Deveney noted that the Timberwolves' asking price in return for Rubio was too high during draft time, though his market is expected to pick up during the second week of July after the shocks of free agency have subsided.
When that happens, sources told Deveney that there will be a number of teams inquiring for Rubio:
"Depending on how free agency shakes out, league sources said there would be no shortage of teams interested in Rubio, including Philadelphia, Houston and the Bucks, who were unwilling to part with Khris Middleton to land Rubio four months ago. The Mavericks, with an interest in signing Mike Conley as a priority, would be a potential partner and a team for which Rubio might like to play.
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As a facilitator, Rubio is one of the top distributing point guards in the league, as he's averaged over eight assists per game in four of his first five NBA seasons. But Dunn carries the prospect of being a more prolific scorer, thus stretching out the Timberwolves offense and opening up more opportunities for Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins.
For teams that are looking for a player who has the pass-first mentality, Rubio would be a great fit. The 76ers could have Rubio finding opportunities to feed their young forwards, while the Rockets would have a floor general who would be able to keep feeding James Harden.
From the backcourt to the frontcourt, this could be a momentous summer for the future of the Oklahoma City Thunder. With Kevin Durant now on the market, the Thunder face the reality of losing one of the top stars of the league.
In order to retain him, they'll have to meet his contract demands, which could mean big-time money. For that to happen, they'll have to clear some salary-cap space, which means dumping some contracts.
Sources told ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst on Thursday that the Thunder have "sought out teams" with plenty of salary cap room to take on center Enes Kanter.
Kanter has provided instant offense off the bench behind Steven Adams, averaging 14.1 points over his two seasons with the Thunder. But in each of the next three seasons, he's projected to make over $17 million, via Spotrac.
For that kind of production, the Thunder could find a similar player at a more reasonable price tag or pay that same kind of money to a big-name free agent.
If the Thunder have any hopes of keeping their franchise player, they'll have to make the necessary deals in order to keep him, even if it means trading away frontcourt depth.
Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.
