NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on Greg Monroe, Rudy Gay and More
As the NBA preseason gets underway and the regular season approaches, the never-ending rumor mill remains in full churn. And the Milwaukee Bucks are the ones driving it in recent weeks.
In the wake of Khris Middleton's potentially season-ending injury, the Bucks traded Tyler Ennis to the Houston Rockets for Michael Beasley. But they may not be done.
Other potential targets for Milwaukee on the wing can be found below, as well as the other NBA rumors that gained traction over the weekend.
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Milwaukee Bucks Wing Targets
Middleton was 20th overall and fourth among shooting guards in Real Plus-Minus last season. Replacing him at this time of year, when free agency is essentially over, is impossible.
But adding a wing or two in the trade market may help, as laid out by Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times at Woelfel's Press Box:
"The fact of the matter is the Bucks, if they want to remain relevant this season, have to acquire a suitable shooting guard, one who can immediately step in and hold down the fort until Middleton returns to full health.
According to several NBA officials, there are several wing players who could be available and fit the bill for the Bucks, depending, of course, on what the Bucks are willing to give up, whether it’s Greg Monroe, Michael Carter-Williams, John Henson or a future first-round pick.
'It sounds trite but you got to give up something good to get something good,’' an NBA general manager said. 'Those guys (Monroe, Carter-Williams and Monroe) are good players. But I’d be careful about giving up a draft pick; next year's draft is going to be pretty good.’'
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Woelfel then listed Gary Harris, Ben McLemore, Alec Burks, Jeremy Lamb, Terrence Ross and Nick Young as potential targets for the Bucks.
Harris' Nuggets and Burks' Jazz wouldn't have much need for anything other than the draft pick Milwaukee might offer. And both those players are still firmly a part of their young team's cores. Jeremy Lamb and Terrence Ross seem a bit more realistic, but the most getable options are McLemore and Young.
Neither was productive or efficient in 2015-16, but you can see why a general manager might talk himself into McLemore. He's still just 23 years old, has above-the-rim athleticism and shot 36.2 percent from three-point range last season.
Clippers Keeping Lob City Intact?
The Los Angeles Clippers are entering their sixth season with the trio of Chris Paul, Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan on the roster.
The group has lost in the first round of the playoffs twice and in the second round three times. But even with its playoff struggles, Clippers owner Steve Ballmer appears intent on keeping it together.
"So after three years of Ballmer's ownership, it might just be long enough to draw some conclusions," ESPN.com's Ramona Shelburne wrote. "Most importantly, according to Clippers insiders, Ballmer is committed to keeping both Griffin and Paul long term, no matter what it costs."
Both Griffin and Paul hold player options for the 2017-18 season. If they decline them, they'll enter unrestricted free agency during the summer of 2017, when the salary cap is projected to take another hike. Despite advancing years for Paul and injury concerns for Griffin, both could command max deals.
If another season ends in heartbreak, it wouldn't be surprising to see either or both at least explore other possibilities.
Rudy Gay a Fit with the Miami Heat?
We're just under a year away from 2017 free agency, but Rudy Gay has already made up his mind about a player option he holds for the 2017-18 season.
According to The Vertical's Adrian Wojnarowski, Gay plans to "become an unrestricted free agent and considers himself unlikely to negotiate a new deal to return to the franchise..."
Naturally, that news has led to trade rumors and speculation on where Gay might play next, and one team that keeps coming up is the Miami Heat.
A match between Gay and the Heat likely won't come via trade, though. The Miami Herald's Barry Jackson wrote as much in August:
"According to an associate, the Heat is among teams that very much appeal to Sacramento forward Rudy Gay, who has been available in trades. But Miami likely lacks the tradable assets to acquire him if it wanted to and his $14.2 million player option for 2017-18 is worrisome. Players signed this month in free agency cannot be traded until Dec. 15.
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That doesn't mean Gay joining Miami is off the table. On Wednesday, Jackson brought Gay up again, this time in an article detailing how the Heat hope to replace Chris Bosh this season.
Gay is typically seen as a small forward, but he has the size of a 4 (6'8", 230 pounds) and has spent time there in international play and for nearly a fifth of his NBA minutes, per Basketball-Reference.
The problem is still tradable assets for Miami. It has several contracts becoming trade-eligible in December, but all of them go beyond this season. Sacramento might prefer to have the cap space in 2017.
The only player who might be enough to pry Gay away this season would be Justise Winslow, but that seems way too steep for the Heat. Free agency next summer seems like the best bet.
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