The 5 NBA Trade Candidates Who Have to Move Before 2016 Offseason Ends
The NBA's free-agent frenzy is over, but that doesn't mean players are done switching teams. Yes, that's right: Summertime trading season is officially here.
Teams aren't typically in a rush to deal expendable parts this time of year. The trade deadline is more than six months away. General managers can slow-play their auctions and wait for offers to improve.
But not every squad has that luxury. Some names need to be moved before the season tips off. This often has more to do with a roster than the player. At times, a general manager simply needs to bite the bullet and capitalize on an asset's value before it drops.
Whatever the reason, a handful of trade candidates should be dealt soon—like now.
Honorable Mentions
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Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls
Jimmy Butler, this summer's most talked-about trade target, is officially off the chopping block, according to ESPN.com's Zach Lowe. Such a development is to be expected, with the Chicago Bulls in win-now mode after signing Rajon Rondo and Dwyane Wade.
Of course, once the Bulls see how awkward the Butler-Rondo-Wade troika is on the court, this is all subject to change.
Tyson Chandler, Phoenix Suns
Let the kiddies play, Phoenix Suns.
Tyson Chandler may serve a mentoring purpose in Arizona, but Dragan Bender and Alex Len should both see time at center. Phoenix can even throw Marquese Chriss into the conversation. If not, then he should be left to split power forward responsibilities with T.J. Warren. Keeping Chandler handcuffs Phoenix's ability to experiment with its youngsters.
Tyreke Evans, New Orleans Pelicans
Sure, the Pelicans could let Tyreke Evans' $10.2 million salary come off the books next summer. But he has undergone three right knee surgeries in the last year and will only steal minutes from Buddy Hield, Solomon Hill and E'Twaun Moore—all of whom, unlike Evans, figure to be long-term fixtures in New Orleans.
Jahlil Okafor/Nerlens Noel, Philadelphia 76ers
A source told Tom Moore of the Bucks County Courier Times that the Philadelphia 76ers "tried like hell" to move Jahlil Okafor ahead of the draft. Nerlens Noel, meanwhile, will be a restricted free agent in 2017 and projects as an iffy fit alongside Joel Embiid.
The Sixers need to trade one of these two if they're at all invested in Embiid, Dario Saric and No. 1 pick Ben Simmons. But clearing up their frontcourt logjam isn't exactly an urgent matter. They will not be playing for anything special in 2016-17 and can use the season to test Embiid's limits while seeing who ranks as the better complement to him and Simmons.
Monta Ellis, Indiana Pacers
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If anyone cares to explain what the Indiana Pacers are doing and why they should keep Monta Ellis, that would be great. We thought team president Larry Bird wanted to push the pace and space the floor. That vision requires above-average shooters at every position and a marginal number of ball-dominant scorers.
The Pacers have gone in the complete opposite direction.
Not one of their moves is damning by itself. Most of are quite good. Jeff Teague used to be an All-Star and will earn roughly one-third ($8.8 million) of what the Memphis Grizzlies are paying Mike Conley ($26.5 million). Thaddeus Young is a quality rotation player on a pre-salary-cap explosion contract whom Larry Legend picked up on the cheap. Al Jefferson is now one of the best backup centers in the game.
But these additions don't jibe with a free-flowing offense. Handling the ball is a comfort thing, and teams need the right mix of players who can do both. Teague and Young, who prefer to operate with the rock in hand, will join a starting five that already includes the ball-dominant Ellis and Paul George.
Teague and George won't have any problem scoring off the catch. They both shot better than 39 percent on spot-up triples in 2015-16. But most of their made buckets also went unassisted. Bake in Myles Turner's and Young's undeveloped three-point strokes, and the Pacers look like a team that has too many cooks in the kitchen.
Retaining Ellis, 30, leaves the Pacers lopsided. He is neither new to Indiana nor Paul George, and he has been laying bricks long enough (11 seasons) to be considered a spacing liability. He manufactured almost 68 percent of his own baskets last season and put down less than 34 percent of all catch-and-shoot opportunities. He hasn't shot better than 33 percent from deep since 2010-11 either.
With two guaranteed years at roughly $22 million, plus an $11.7 million player option for 2018-19 left on his contract, Ellis should be easy to move in the new cap climate. And the Pacers would do well to shop for someone who is more suited to complementary-scorer duty—or at least a better defensive player to pair with Teague in the backcourt.
Kosta Koufos, Sacramento Kings
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League sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that the Sacramento Kings are looking to trade Rudy Gay, Kosta Koufos and Ben McLemore. Of those three, Koufos is the only one who needs to be dealt in haste.
The Kings selected two centers during the first round of the 2016 draft, Georgios Papagiannis out of Greece and Skal Labissiere from Kentucky. That's on top of already housing DeMarcus Cousins and Willie Cauley-Stein, both of whom are best suited at the 5.
At least the Sixers' epic frontcourt mess is kind of accidental. The Kings deliberately assembled this army of bigs, even though they were roasted under similar circumstances during the regular season. Two of Cousins, Cauley-Stein and Koufos shared the floor for 1,283 total minutes last season, according to NBAWowy.com. Sacramento, not surprisingly, wasn't even close to good in those situations:
| 596 | -2.5 | |
| 294 | -2.8 | |
| 393 | -6.8 |
Slotting one of these three at power forward, for any amount of time, is tactical suicide. Having Cousins expand his offensive arsenal to include 210 three-point attempts didn't even help. And it's unlikely he has the same green light from the outside under new head coach/offensive traditionalist Dave Joerger.
Cousins is a superstar, and Cauley-Stein won't turn 23 until August, so the Kings are not trading them. Koufos is the sensible option. He is only 27 and owed a maximum of $25.2 million over the next three years (player option in 2018-19).
Koufos isn't a threat outside 10 feet of the basket and failed to crack the 50th percentile of roll-man efficiency in Sacramento. But he posted better rim-protecting numbers than Cousins and limited opponents to shooting percentages 5.4 points below their 2015-16 average inside six feet of the hoop.
There is a home, and a role, for Koufos somewhere. Just not in Sacramento.
Greg Monroe, Milwaukee Bucks
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One season is all the Milwaukee Bucks should need to know Greg Monroe isn't a feasible fit. He didn't prop up the offense enough to warrant superstar money, and his frontcourt marriage to Jabari Parker is insufficient on the defensive end.
That's why Monroe was available for the taking to start free agency, according to USA Today's Jeff Zillgitt. He can become a free agent after next season, driving down his market value, but Milwaukee shouldn't look to deal for an equal return.
Cutting bait with Monroe forces head coach Jason Kidd to run out John Henson at center, which is essentially addition by subtraction. The Bucks' go-to starting lineup of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Michael Carter-Williams, Khris Middleton, Monroe and Parker was exponentially better when subbing in the 25-year-old, 6'11" slinky:
| 539 | 105.6 | 112.4 | -6.7 | |
| 61 | 112.7 | 83.3 | 29.3 |
Yes, Henson's sample with Milwaukee's other four starters was barely one-tenth the size of Monroe's. But his short-burst success only supports what looks like a superior fit on paper.
Henson is more capable of covering up for Parker's defensive miscues. He held opponents to 42.3 percent shooting at the rim last season—nearly 10 percentage points better than Monroe's mark of 51.5. Even the offensive fit is an improvement. Henson doesn't need back-to-the-basket touches. He can function solely as a rim-runner and is already a more efficient pick-and-roll finisher than Monroe.
This isn't just about Henson. The Bucks can roll out Mirza Teletovic at the 5 or go full-tilt bonkers and throw in rookie Thon Maker. It doesn't really matter what they do—so long as they do it without Monroe.
Nikola Vucevic, Orlando Magic
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Although it's tempting to demand the Orlando Magic free Aaron Gordon from his (presumed) role as a small forward next season, Nikola Vucevic's salary-matching potential is the bigger draw.
Adding Bismack Biyombo, Jeff Green and Serge Ibaka to a crowded, relatively spaceless frontcourt rotation is all the motivation Orlando needs to shop Vucevic. He won't turn 26 until October, will make just $36.8 million over the next three seasons and has produced like an All-Star since 2014-15. The Magic also know Ibaka will have the option to sign elsewhere next summer.
Their inclination is to keep Vucevic for now, according to the Orlando Sentinel's Josh Robbins. As Bleacher Report's Jared Dubin explained, that could work:
"It's a trio that should be able to play together in multiple combinations. Biyombo provides rim-protection and pick-and-roll lob ability. Vucevic provides a post presence and a strong mid-range jumper. Ibaka blends the skill sets of the two, with range beyond the three-point arc, a solid pick-and-pop game and elite interior defense.
"
There's only one problem: Keeping Biyombo, Ibaka and Vucevic forces Gordon and Green into almost-exclusive small forward duty. Neither of them has the jumper to make those assignments work. Green shoots 33.9 percent from three but has matched that benchmark just three times for his career. Gordon more than tripled his number of made treys between his rookie (13) and sophomore (42) seasons but still shot under 30 percent from beyond the arc.
Retaining Vucevic just to forge ridiculous depth at the 4 and 5 spots doesn't make a ton of sense. While Ibaka has the offensive range to play power forward, his two new running mates do not.
Biyombo shot under 34 percent outside the restricted area last season and shouldn't defend three-point shooters. Vucevic, though he shot 48.2 percent between 16 feet and the three-point line last season, has no business defending players who attack off the dribble.
If the Magic are trying to safeguard themselves against Ibaka's departure, that's one thing. Then again, if that's the case, they shouldn't have opened their treasure chest of assets for someone they thought could be a rental.
Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder
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Oklahoma City Thunder general manager Sam Presti finds himself in quite the pickle following Kevin Durant's decision to join the Golden State Warriors.
Does he trade Russell Westbrook for fear that he'll leave in free agency next July? Or does he roll the dice on his return, hoping Durant's absence fuels a desire for Westbrook to win a title in OKC on his own?
Rival general managers hold a "strong belief" that Presti will deal Westbrook, according to Bleacher Report's Howard Beck. Another league executive intimated something similar, telling the Boston Herald's Steve Bulpett: "He's gone after this year. A hundred percent. I think that's the case no matter what [Durant had decided]. I guess people can always change their mind, but I think this season was going to be it for him there no matter what."
Trading Westbrook is indeed the smart play. Oklahoma City can't afford to lose two top-five superstars for nothing within one year of each other. And if the team is going to move, it has to ship him out now, ahead of the regular season, not closer to February's trade deadline.
The Thunder will have no problem demanding a king's ransom for Westbrook's expiring contract when suitors have an entire 82-game schedule to sell the All-Star point guard on a long-term union. Cut that sample size in half, or even by 20 games, and Presti loses leverage.
Plus, delaying Westbrook's exit only hamstrings the Thunder's rebuilding process. Dealing him this summer maximizes the value of their 2017 first-rounder. They immediately enter top-pick territory without him, positioning themselves to land a burgeoning cornerstone capable of headlining a thorough rebuild.
The Thunder can't pass up that opportunity after Durant's departure.
Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com unless otherwise cited. Salary information via Basketball Insiders.
Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter, @danfavale.
