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NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz on J.R. Smith, Carmelo Anthony and John Wall
December 9, 2018
The NBA trade season is starting to heat up following Friday's three-team trade between the Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers and Washington Wizards.
The deal that sent George Hill and Jason Smith to Milwaukee, Matthew Dellavedova and John Henson to Cleveland and Sam Dekker to D.C. has sparked intrigue on what will be next domino to fall in the NBA, particularly with the Cavaliers, who appear to be in full rebuild mode.
Sure enough, reports soon began trickling in regarding Cleveland guard J.R. Smith.
According to Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer, the Houston Rockets and New Orleans Pelicans both expressed interest in Smith as they look for depth at the wing position.
Kevin O'Connor @KevinOConnorNBAExpect the Cavaliers to try to move on next from JR Smith. I heard this week they received some interest for Smith from the Rockets and Pelicans—both teams need depth at the wing position. Smith's 2019-20 salary is guaranteed for only $3.9M, so it has some value as a trade chip.
The Cavaliers have been looking to shop Smith since Nov. 19—the last time the 33-year-old played this season.
The two mutually split up following the veteran guard's comments to Jason Lloyd of The Athletic that the team was intentionally tanking.
"I don't think the goal is to win," Smith told Lloyd. "The goal isn't to go out there and try to get as many wins as you can. I think the goal is to develop and lose to get lottery picks. I think that was always the plan."
Smith is under contract through the 2019-20 season, is expected to earn $14.72 million this season but is only guaranteed $3.9 million next season.
In 11 games this season, he averaged 6.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game while averaging 20.2 minutes per game.
Melo-LeBron Marriage Unlikely
Despite a report from Joe Vardon of The Athletic stating that LeBron James wants Carmelo Anthony to join the Los Angeles Lakers, the team's front office apparently does not feel the same way.
Per Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times, the Lakers have "no interest" in adding Anthony.
Both reports state James has not spoken to team president Magic Johnson or GM Rob Pelinka about acquiring Anthony.
The 34-year-old is technically still a member of the Houston Rockets but became estranged from the team after only 10 games, and Anthony cannot be traded until Dec. 15.
Anthony and James are close friends, but the 10-time All-Star has seen a significant drop in production since he left the New York Knicks following the 2016-17 season, shooting a career-worst 40 percent from the field in 88 games over the past two seasons.
Knicks Interested in Wall?
Perhaps the most attractive name on the trade block is Washington Wizards guard John Wall, and Marc Berman of the New York Post suggested on Tuesday that the Knicks could be in play for the All-Star.
The Knicks are in a rebuilding phase, and ESPN's Ian Begley reported on Thursday that the team has not had any internal discussions about trading for Wall.