NBA Trade Rumors: Latest on Ben Simmons, Karl-Anthony Towns, Warriors' Prospects
The NBA trade market typically takes a little time to get going.
Teams need time to assess their rosters and shape their goals for the 2021-22 season. The player pool of trade candidates remains shallow into December, when players who inked free-agent pacts in the offseason start becoming eligible to be traded. And, of course, as the Association's hierarchy starts to cement, players stuck on the hoops world's have-nots can see their frustrations grow along with the loss column.
Having said all of that, the rumor mill isn't bound by the same calendar.
Trade rumblings can surface at every time, and they've already sprouted up in several different markets.
76ers Resume Fining Ben Simmons, Still Haven't Found Desired Return
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The latest update on the Ben Simmons saga is bad news for his bank account.
"The Philadelphia 76ers fined All-Star guard Ben Simmons his $360,000 game salary for missing Thursday night's victory over the Detroit Pistons and plan to continue fining him until he cooperates with team physicians on his mental health and fulfills other basketball-related obligations," ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported.
The Sixers previously fined him $2 million for a training-camp holdout and limited return to the team, then stopped the fines when he informed them "he wasn't mentally prepared to play and planned to seek professional assistance," Wojnarowski wrote. They felt the fines were again necessary due to Simmons' "refusal to provide basic details of his course of mental health meetings, evaluation or treatments or to accept consultation with any specialists arranged by the team."
Simmons requested a trade away from Philadelphia in August. The hang-up, according to Wojnarowski, is that "the Sixers want a high-level player in return for Simmons, and that hasn't been available yet in months of trade discussions."
Rival Teams Monitoring Karl-Anthony Towns in Minnesota
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This season was supposed to be different for the Minnesota Timberwolves. They thought they could compete with a core composed of Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards and D'Angelo Russell, and for a second, they did. They opened the year with three wins in four games, including a triumph over the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks.
But the Wolves have since dropped four straight, and the last three losses were all decided by at least 18 points. So, when Towns' Twitter account liked a "#FreeKAT" tweet following the third of those four losses, it seemed like frustration had already reached a boiling point in the Gopher State.
Towns later claimed his account was hacked, so maybe he hasn't reached the disgruntled state just yet. That won't stop other teams from hoping he will, though.
"There are those around the league who are watching his situation closely," The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski reported. "Towns has had six GMs and five head coaches since he was drafted No. 1 overall in 2015. The Wolves have made the playoffs just once in his time here. If you're looking for the next star player to want to move, he would be high on a lot of lists."
Krawczynski also noted Towns has never indicated any frustration and "has been adamant that he is on board and wants to be a part of the solution in Minnesota." So this might be wishful thinking from potential trade suitors and nothing more. Still, the more losses that pile up for the Wolves, the more vultures will be circling above Target Center.
Golden State Would Need Substantial Trade to Part with Top Prospects
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The Golden State Warriors might be the most fascinating team in the NBA trade market. That's assuming, of course, they're actually in the market for a deal.
The Warriors have roared to an NBA-best 8-1 start, with all four of their last wins decided by 13-plus points. Stephen Curry has placed himself in the MVP race, Jordan Poole has generated some Most Improved Player award buzz, and Draymond Green has done a little of everything to make the defense dominant.
However, Golden State has done all of this with few contributions from its young core of rookies Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody and sophomore James Wiseman. Moody has logged 53 minutes in seven games, Kuminga has totaled 17 in four and Wiseman has yet to play while recovering from April knee surgery.
If the Warriors decide their young players aren't ready to contribute to a championship run, they might be better off trading them for veterans who can. However, Anthony Slater of The Athletic said on the HoopsHype Podcast that they would need "a home-run type of thing" to consider dealing Wiseman or Kuminga.
Slater added Golden State doesn't seem to view Ben Simmons as that type of return, and he added that these prospects might not move the needle much for Philadelphia, either. So, while there might be some players out there who would make the Warriors think about a blockbuster, it seems like they aren't on the trade market yet.
