NBA Trade Rumors: Latest Buzz on Andre Drummond, Heat Targets and More
The NBA's swap season is almost upon us.
While the transaction window is technically open for much of the year, things typically don't get rolling until Dec. 15. That's the earliest point at which most players who signed contracts this summer can be traded, meaning the pool of trade candidates essentially explodes over night.
With that critical transaction date creeping closer, the Association's trade rumor mill is picking up steam. We'll break down the latest below.
Hornets Eyeing Andre Drummond
With a high-priced roster of mostly aging players—several of whom aren't signed past this season—and a win-loss record sitting deep in the red, the Detroit Pistons loom as one of this year's most logical sellers.
While they don't appear ready to pull the plug just yet, the Charlotte Hornets are reportedly keeping a close eye on the proceedings. They want two-time All-Star center Andre Drummond, per Heavy.com's Sean Deveney.
"He'll be a priority there," a league executive told Deveney. "It's just a matter of whether they make him a priority now and give up something to get him or try to make the move later."
The Hornets could take their chances and wait for 2020 free agency, but there isn't exactly a rich history of top-tier talent flocking to Buzz City. Then again, if they make the move now, they could cost themselves multiple assets—Deveney reported a package could include both a first-round pick and 21-year-old scoring guard Malik Monk—for someone who isn't guaranteed to stick around.
It isn't hard to imagine the Pistons deciding that a rebuild is inevitable and holding a fairly prominent fire sale. But the post-Kemba Walker Hornets would be an interesting buyer given how much youth they have in their rotation and how far they might be from high-level competition.
Heat Would Have Interest in Spurs' Veterans
For more than two decades now, the San Antonio Spurs have sat alongside death and taxes as life's greatest certainties. But one of those three things is suddenly unlike the others, and no, we haven't been granted immortality or transplanted to a tax-free land.
The Spurs seem old and slow, particularly on the defensive end, and it's threatening to sabotage their 22-year playoff streak. They've not only dropped 12 of their first 18 games, they've done so while facing the league's fourth-easiest schedule, per ESPN. Things could get ugly when the competition actually rises to league average or above.
Maybe San Antonio doesn't even wait around to see. The Spurs could dive headfirst into a rebuild by shopping high-priced, aging household names DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge. Should they put either on the block, the Miami Heat might be interested, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported:
"The Heat assuredly would due diligence on both for two reasons: 1) Both remain highly productive and 2) Neither has a contract that runs beyond the summer of 2021, which is critical because Miami wants to preserve max cap space that summer for a run at Giannis Antetokounmpo or, secondarily, a few other targets including Victor Oladipo."
Buoyed by the arrival of Jimmy Butler and the fast starts of several young contributors, the Heat have sprinted out to a 12-4 start and seem poised to shatter preseason expectations. That said, it's fair to wonder if there's a cap on the current core's success since Butler stands as the only established, in-prime star.
Adding a DeRozan or Aldridge changes that, even if both are either battling Father Time or will be soon. They might not be top-10 players, but they could be near the max of what Miami can reasonably afford without sacrificing a blue-chip prospect. That's assuming, of course, San Antonio would take something less in return, which feels far from a given, for now at least.
Grizzlies Insist They Aren't Buying Out Iggy
The Memphis Grizzlies and Andre Iguodala were headed for divorce as soon as they left the altar.
The Griz are a youth-rich organization that could be years away from competing for anything of substance. Iggy is a soon-to-be 36-year-old former Finals MVP who played in the last five championship rounds.
They know they aren't meant to be together, so they haven't been since Iggy was traded to Memphis in July. Both parties are waiting for a resolution that makes sense for their respective futures, while multiple contenders wait with fingers crossed that the veteran wing might one day hit the buyout market.
If you take the Grizzlies' word for it, that's not happening, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported on NBA Countdown: "The message that Memphis has been delivering to the entire league ... 'You are going to have to trade for him. We are not buying him out. He is not going to be on the free-agent market.'"
Marc Stein of the New York Times reported in July that Memphis hoped to fetch a first-round pick in any Iguodala deal, which might explain why the swingman hasn't relocated yet. He's a valuable piece come playoff time, but he's also a mid-30s rental with pretty severe shooting limitations.
This game of chicken could take a while, then, and it'll be fascinating to see whether someone meets Memphis' asking price, the Grizzlies settle for less or if the contenders' collective patience pays off and Iggy hits the buyout market after all.
