Report: High-Profile NBA Players 'Encouraged' by Knicks, 76ers, Clippers, More
On the heels of the NBA trade deadline, some notable players around the league have taken note of the moves made by a number of teams.
Per Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes, multiple high-profile players have been "encouraged" by the direction of teams like the New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers, Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors.
One notable exclusion from that list are the Los Angeles Lakers, whose biggest move prior to Thursday's trade deadline was adding Mike Muscala from the Clippers for Michael Beasley and Ivica Zubac.
The Lakers missed out on the biggest prize at the deadline because Anthony Davis remained with the New Orleans Pelicans.
Per ESPN.com's Adrian Wojnarowski, Los Angeles' trade offer for Davis included Zubac, Josh Hart, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Kyle Kuzma and two first-round draft picks.
The Knicks have positioned themselves to be the most intriguing team this summer. They created enough cap space to sign two max contracts by trading Kristaps Porzingis, Courtney Lee and Tim Hardaway Jr. to the Dallas Mavericks.
Three of the top five teams in the Eastern Conference—Raptors, Bucks, Sixers—all made significant deals prior to the trade deadline. Philadelphia added Tobias Harris from the Clippers. The Raptors acquired Marc Gasol from the Memphis Grizzlies, and the Bucks landed Nikola Mirotic in a three-team deal.
Since the players are unnamed, it's unclear what impact their apparent enthusiasm could have on teams as they pursue free agents and trade options over the summer.
Of course, it could also mean the players are just looking from afar at what teams are doing and offered their thoughts on what some of the biggest movers and shakers could do.
