Over the course of the 2018/19 NBA season, up until February’s trade deadline, we’re keeping an eye on potential trade candidates from around the NBA, monitoring their value and exploring the likelihood that they’ll be moved. Each of these looks at possible trade candidates focuses on a specific division, as we zero in on three players from that division.
Southwest trade candidates like Dennis Smith, Wesley Matthews, and Carmelo Anthony have been in the news lately, but we’ve discussed them in previous installments of our Trade Candidate series. Today, we’ll be focusing on a few players who haven’t necessarily been at the center of recent trade rumors, but still could very well be on the move by February 7.
Here’s our latest look at a few possible trade candidates from the Southwest…
Brandon Knight, G
Houston Rockets
$14.63MM cap hit; $15.64MM guaranteed salary in 2019/20; UFA in 2020
Knight has essentially been on the trade block since the Rockets acquired him from Phoenix during the offseason, with a December report suggesting that Houston is dangling Knight in trade talks for a wing.
Knight’s appeal as a trade chip from Houston’s perspective is obvious. Of the team’s six players earning more than $4MM this season, he’s the only one who isn’t a key contributor. His $14.63MM salary is ideal for matching purposes, and getting his $15.64MM salary for 2019/20 off the books could help the Rockets avoid another big tax penalty next season.
Of course, Knight’s appeal to other teams will be… limited. While he has returned from the ACL tear that sidelined him for over a year, he continues to be bothered by knee issues and hasn’t looked good for Houston in the 12 games he has played (3.0 PPG on .234/.156/.818 shooting). If a team agrees to take on Knight’s contract in exchange for a solid rotation player, that team will almost certainly be receiving the Rockets’ 2019 first-round pick as well.
Julius Randle, F/C
New Orleans Pelicans
$8.64MM cap hit; $9.07MM player option for 2019/20
Like the Rockets, the Pelicans are exploring upgrades on the wing and will likely try to attach a first-round pick to an overpriced veteran (Solomon Hill) to accommodate a deal. Still, even though that’s New Orleans’ most obvious trade package, it’s not the team’s only option.
Depending on what sort of player the club is pursuing, making Randle available could make sense. On the surface, trading him doesn’t seem prudent — he’s had a terrific year (20.1 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 2.9 APG), and is one of a handful of reliable pieces on a Pelicans team that lacks depth.
Still, he’ll likely be a free agent at season’s end, and there’s no guarantee the Pelicans will be able to re-sign him. It’s also unclear if he’ll be able to play at the same time Anthony Davis and Nikola Mirotic in the postseason, assuming New Orleans makes it — that lineup would be awfully big and wouldn’t match up well against many of the team’s potential opponents.
As such, I think the Pelicans could explore flipping Randle for one or two players who could help the team in the short term, especially if one of those players is a wing who would fit better alongside Davis and Mirotic. New Orleans showed last spring that it can win with that frontcourt duo, so Randle looks to me like the most expendable of the club’s top four or five players.
JaMychal Green, F
Memphis Grizzlies
$7.67MM cap hit; UFA in 2019
It seems hard to believe that the Grizzlies were, briefly, the No. 1 seed in the West less than two months ago. The club now ranks 14th in the conference and while head coach J.B. Bickerstaff says the postseason is still the goal, it seems irresponsible for the club to continue acting as a buyer.
A full-fledged fire sale is probably unrealistic too, since it would be an abrupt change of direction for the franchise in the span of a few weeks. But, as Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian recently wrote, some smaller-scale “strategic” selling seems possible.
If Memphis takes that route, Green would be an obvious candidate to be dealt. The veteran power forward is in the final year of a mid-level type contract and is putting up career-high numbers in several categories (10.8 PPG, .512 FG%, .397 3PT%). Moving him would also clear a path for the Grizzlies to feature promising rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. in a more prominent role down the stretch.
Green is unlikely to inspire a bidding war, but teams in need of one more frontcourt piece should have some interest if the Grizzlies make him available.
Previously:
- NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Southwest (12/6)
- NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Southwest (11/15)
- The rest of our NBA Trade Candidate series
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
I find it interesting that even though Brandon Knight hasn’t been looked on as a star caliber player he’s averaged double digits every year of his career except this year. I think his career high 19.6 points per game. But he just hasn’t been consistent.
He also is one of those guys like Rudy gay, or Monte Ellis who typically is weak in the advanced stats. Some guys can put up numbers but they are empty.
As Chuck said last night it’s easy to get all the shots on a bad team. He has never been on a team above .500
Obsessing over a “bad” contract at this time of year is idiocy. I’m talking more about the Pels, than Houston, only because the latter is in the luxury tax, although their penny pinching is still beyond belief.
Pels have real needs they need to focus on, particularly since their needs don’t align neatly with the players that are likely to be available. Whoever they target, it’s important not screw it up deals by trying to attach Hill to them. Hill’s contract creates no tax and would, if traded, yield no cap space. Definitely trade the spectacular but worthless Randle. One thing they can’t afford is their annual ritual of trading their 1st (even in this draft) solely for pieces which won’t be rotation pieces both this year and next. If Davis demands a trade over the summer, and they oblige, then they’ll have a bunch of cap space soon enough. Davis won’t want to stay next year because they got rid of Hill’s contract, or because he appreciates that they rented him some help this year. If they don’t oblige, then next year may be the last year he’s around, so they should make sure any significant deal yields some return that helps them then as well.