NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on D'Angelo Russell, Kevin Love Trades, More
On Thursday, ESPN's Kevin Pelton tweeted that the NBA is in its longest non-lockout trade drought since the ABA-NBA merger, with the last completed trade occurring on July 11th. However, with the unofficial start of trade season—December 15—imminent, that dry spell is likely to end soon. As such, the rumor mill is abuzz. Here, we've rounded up three of the latest reports.
Let's dig in.
D'Angelo Russell to Minnesota Still Possible
After the shocking sign-and-trade this summer that landed D'Angelo Russell on the Warriors, the New York Times' Marc Stein infamously stated that the Warriors will trade him and only acquired him to recoup value from Kevin Durant's departure.
Since that time, Golden State management has said all the right things, summarily denying Stein's statement, but with the Warriors in the midst of a lost season, trade speculation surrounding the one-time All-Star has not died down. In fact, one of his main suitors this summer still maintains interest.
Per The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski, the Minnesota Timberwolves are still invested in trying to bring Russell in, and his fit with the team makes even more sense now than it did this summer. The Wolves' greatest roster hole at the moment is point guard, as they've played the likes of Jeff Teague, rookie Jarrett Culver, Josh Okogie and Shabazz Napier at the position. The team also ranks 22nd in assists per game and 27th in three-point shooting.
In summary, Russell isn't just a want for Minnesota, he's a need.
The specific trade package has been outlined ad nauseam already. The Wolves would likely need to give up wing Robert Covington, big man Gorgui Dieng and two future draft picks at minimum to land the guard, and that may seem like a lot. But in SLAM Magazine earlier this year, Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns openly proclaimed their desire to play together, and Towns is the most important figure in the Minnesota franchise. Making him happy and making the team better in one fell swoop is a no-brainer.
The only question now is whether Golden State will want to listen to an offer.
Kevin Love May Not Actually Be Traded
This seems like an open-and-shut case. Cavaliers coach John Beilein appears to be prioritizing his young players over veterans, and veteran forward Kevin Love would like to be traded, per The Athletic's Shams Charania. Based solely on that context, you'd imagine Love would be on the next plane out of Cleveland.
But trading the five-time All-Star might not be so easy.
On Thursday, The Athletic's Jason Lloyd reported that the remaining three years and roughly $91 million left on Love's deal might be a prohibitive cost to getting a deal done. Lloyd's sources state that several teams have asked the Cavaliers to include a first-round pick or other notable asset in addition to Love because his contract is so large.
That much money for a player who's just two years removed from his fifth All-Star Game may seem reasonable, but Love has a long injury history, and his statistics have rapidly declined in recent years.
Given the aforementioned weak trade market, a desperate team like the Blazers might be willing to acquire Love without asking for additional assets. But after this latest update, let's watch his stock more closely from here until February's trade deadline.
Wizards Hope to Extend Bertans
One of the most surprising developments of this young season has been the explosion of the Washington Wizards offense. Despite John Wall's absence and a largely anonymous roster, the Wizards own the NBA's fifth-ranked offense, and while that's obviously in large part thanks to Bradley Beal, he can't do it by himself. Thankfully, he's had help from the likes of Davis Bertans.
In his weekly Friday column, ESPN's Zach Lowe pointed out that Bertans' current combination of three-point shooting volume and efficiency has been matched by only one player in NBA history: Stephen Curry (of course). Obviously, his shot profile and role on the Wizards is vastly different from a healthy Curry's significance to the Warriors, but the fact remains the same: Bertans has been staggeringly good this season.
This seemingly out-of-nowhere breakout has the Latvian Laser's trade value rocketing, as he's making just $7 million dollars and has only two years left on his current deal, not to mention players with his size and skill are rare. However, The Athletic's David Aldridge reported that the Wizards would like to re-sign Bertans after next season, as general manager Tommy Sheppard exhaustively supported his big man after trading for him this summer and looks great for doing so now.
Given Washington's lottery status and limited routes to future contention, holding on to Bertans when he could clearly help numerous contenders may seem confusing. But the Wizards likely see themselves as a contender again next year. If Wall returns to form and the team's high first-round pick pans out immediately, the Wizards will likely be a playoff team again, and Bertans is a perfect role player alongside that kind of star power.
