Trade Rumors: Morant, Lakers, Pelicans, Mathurin, Kuminga
Although Ja Morant‘s time with the Grizzlies has been on a downward trajectory for a few years, tensions reached a boiling point at the end of October, when Morant received a team-issued one-game suspension, writes Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints.
Head coach Tuomas Iisalo reportedly challenged Morant’s “leadership and effort” following a loss to the Lakers in which the point guard was noticeably disengaged throughout the second half. Morant responded to Iisalo in a “tone deemed inappropriate.”
According to Siegel’s sources, the event led to a schism in Memphis’ locker room, with some players agreeing with Morant and some siding with the coaching staff. He never formally requested a trade, but the 26-year-old made it clear he couldn’t see a path forward with the Grizzlies in the wake of the suspension, Siegel adds.
The Heat hold a level of interest in Morant, Siegel confirms. The Kings are also hanging on the periphery of the situation, though they’d only be interested in acquiring Morant if the asking price was low enough — Sacramento is unwilling to part with draft assets in any talks for the two-time All-Star, sources tell Siegel.
Here are a few more rumors and notes from around the NBA:
- The Lakers are exploring the possibility of trading their 2032 first-round pick for two or three lesser-value first-rounders, according to Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports (Twitter video link), who points out that Phoenix made a similar move last year in a deal with Utah. Jarred Vanderbilt and Gabe Vincent have both been made available as Los Angeles continues to search for a wing upgrade, O’Connor adds.
- The Pelicans are among the teams with interest in Pacers wing Bennedict Mathurin, league sources tell Siegel (Twitter video link). Indiana has checked in with New Orleans about second-year center Yves Missi, and Siegel wonders if the two clubs could potentially make a deal centered around those two players.
- Head coach Steve Kerr said Jonathan Kuminga‘s trade demand won’t cause any problems for the Warriors prior to Thursday’s game vs. New York, as Dalton Johnson of NBC Sports Bay Area relays. “It won’t be a distraction,” Kerr said. “Jonathan’s a great young guy. His teammates like him. He’s handling himself well. There won’t be a distraction.” Kerr said he spoke to Kuminga earlier in the day. “There’s not a whole lot I can say about the other stuff,” Kerr said. “It is what it is. Difficult situation for everybody. Part of this league, part of this job. We just keep moving forward. But it’s a tough situation and I don’t really have much to add.”
Timberwolves Notes: Deadline, Hyland, Beringer, Edwards
The Timberwolves had an uneven start to the season, but they hold the NBA’s best record (17-6) since Thanksgiving and they made an emphatic case for the front office to have a quiet trade deadline in Tuesday’s blowout victory in Milwaukee, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
Playing without Rudy Gobert (suspension) and Anthony Edwards (foot), the Wolves annihilated the Bucks, cruising to a 33-point victory that “felt like a statement” to the world — and president of basketball operations Tim Connelly — that the current roster may not need any upgrades ahead of February 5, Krawczynski writes.
“We don’t need anything,” one player told The Athletic after the game. “We’re a really, really good team.”
According to Krawczynski, Minnesota’s front office has been evaluating trade options for “weeks.” Team sources tell The Athletic the Wolves are unlikely to pursue high-priced point guards like Ja Morant or LaMelo Ball because they want to stay under the second tax apron and don’t want to gut their depth.
Krawczynski suggests a more likely move may be to add a reserve wing or guard who can help alleviate some of the pressure Edwards faces at the end of games.
Here’s more on the Wolves:
- Two players who made a significant impact on Tuesday were fifth-year guard Bones Hyland and center Joan Beringer, Krawcznski notes. Hyland, who finished with 23 points, five assists and a remarkable plus-41 in 21 minutes, has emerged as reliable bench option over the past several weeks, while rookie Beringer was playing his first meaningful minutes of the season — he had 12 points, five rebounds and was plus-30 in 30 minutes. Head coach Chris Finch it was possible Beringer could have a rotation role going forward. “We can. People are going to have to sacrifice minutes, but if he plays like this, then we should be benefiting from everybody,” Finch said. “We will step-by-step this. Since draft night, we’ve long believed in this kid. This is just the beginning.”
- In an interview with Spencer Davis of R.org, former first-round pick Hyland says he has matured since he was drafted 26th overall by Denver in 2021. “I would say the biggest thing is maturity, understanding the business side of basketball, and just understanding the patience of basketball, too,” Hyland said. “I feel like some guys get carried away with losing their mind, losing their mental battle with basketball. I feel like once you beat that, everything comes to be much easier for you on the court. I feel like I beat that, and now, it’s just taking care of the basketball part and just trying to go out there and be the best basketball player I can be for Minnesota.”
- Edwards will miss his second straight game on Friday at Houston due to right foot injury management, the Wolves announced (via Twitter). According to Krawczynski (Twitter links), Finch referred to the star guard as day-to-day on Thursday morning. Krawczynski hears there are no long-term concerns with Edwards’ injury.
Knicks’ Shamet, Trail Blazers’ Grant Available Thursday
A pair of veterans who have missed significant time due to injuries will be active on Thursday. Knicks wing Landry Shamet was upgraded to questionable and then available for Thursday’s game at Golden State, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Post (Twitter links).
Head coach Mike Brown said on Sunday that Shamet had been cleared for full contact work as he worked his way back from a right shoulder injury, which he sustained on November 22 against Orlando.
Shamet was an important part of Brown’s rotation early in the season, averaging 9.3 points while shooting 42.4% from three-point range in 15 games (20.9 minutes per contest). The 28-year-old wing is in his eighth NBA season and second with New York.
In other Knicks news, Jalen Brunson will miss tonight’s game but the right ankle sprain he suffered early in Wednesday’s loss in Sacramento isn’t serious — he’s considered day-to-day, Bondy writes for The New York Post.
Trail Blazers forward Jerami Grant will return to action on Thursday as well, according to Sean Highkin of The Rose Garden Report (Twitter link). Head coach Tiago Splitter indicated that Grant, who has missed the past 14 games due to left Achilles tendonitis, will come off the bench and be on a minutes restriction tonight against Atlanta.
The 31-year-old Grant was off to a solid start to 2025/26 prior to the injury, averaging 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists on .436/.389/.866 shooting in 26 games, including 14 starts (30.3 MPG).
Splitter also provided an injury update on star forward Deni Avdija, Highkin adds. Avdija, who will miss his second straight game tonight due to lower back soreness, is “getting better” and the team considers him day-to-day.
Latest On NBA’s Potential European League
Speaking to the media in Berlin, Germany ahead of Thursday’s Grizzlies-Magic game, commissioner Adam Silver confirmed the NBA is pressing ahead with its plans for a new league in Europe, writes Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press.
“I would just say we continue to be enormously excited about it,” Silver said about the notion of an NBA Europe. “We’ve been meeting with clubs that are interested in participating in our league. We’ve been in discussions with other potential stakeholders, including media companies that would like to cover it, potential media partners and traditional sponsors who want to work with us on the league. We’re looking at the opportunity to grow the arena infrastructure, not just here in Germany but throughout the continent. It’s something that we’re enormously excited about.”
The NBA recently received a letter of potential legal action from the EuroLeague if the NBA contacts teams the EuroLeague says are under contract, a source confirmed to Ben Horney of Front Office Sports. According to Horney, a person familiar with the NBA’s thinking says it has “engaged with all parties in a lawful and appropriate manner,” and has “not engaged with anyone about any opportunity that they are not free to discuss.”
Silver discussed the notice on Thursday, saying, “I send the legal letters to my lawyers, so I’ll let them handle that,” per Joe Vardon and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic.
“I don’t think by any means it’s inevitable that there is a clash (between the NBA, FIBA, and EuroLeague,” Silver said. “I think there’s opportunity here to grow European basketball. And frankly, I’m much more focused on the competitive landscape, not just with other sports in Europe, but with other entertainment options. That’s how we view the NBA. We don’t think of ourselves, even in the United States, as necessarily competing against other basketball organizations or other sports organizations. We’re competing for people’s attention.
“And if I thought that the ceiling was the existing EuroLeague and their fan interest, we wouldn’t be spending the kind of time and attention we are on this project.”
There are rumors that Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid — the most successful EuroLeague team in history — is leaning toward joining the NBA’s proposed league, which doesn’t have a formal name or official start date. Several of the permanent EuroLeague teams have signed 10-year contracts, but those deals include out clauses, including a €10 million early exit fee and additional damages that would be determined based on the situation, a source tells Horney.
Although the EuroLeague has reservations about the NBA’s European project, there’s still a possibility that the two sides could collaborate in some fashion in the future, according to Horney.
Silver reiterated on Thursday that the NBA will determine by the end of this year whether it will expand its own league, Reynolds notes.
“To me, honestly, the real heavy lift would be creating a new league in Europe,” Silver said. “As I said, that’s an enormous undertaking, which is why we’ve been moving one step at a time and being very careful and cautious and making sure we’re covering all our bases.”
Wizards’ Cam Whitmore Out For Season Due To Blood Clot
5:35 pm: The Wizards have applied for a disabled player exception for Whitmore, a league source tells Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link). The team does have an opening on its standard roster to potentially sign a free agent, though a contract using the DPE would only be able to cover the rest of the season.
4:12 pm: Wizards forward Cam Whitmore has been formally ruled out for the remainder of the 2025/26 season due to a blood clot in his right shoulder, the team announced on Thursday (Twitter link).
According to the Wizards, Whitmore has begun the recovery process for the upper-extremity deep vein thrombosis he was diagnosed with on December 23.
A one-and-done prospect at Villanova in 2022/23, Whitmore was viewed as a potential top-five pick in the 2023 draft, but ultimately fell to No. 20, where he was selected by the Rockets. In two seasons with Houston, the 21-year-old played a limited role off the bench but showed some promise as a scorer, averaging 10.8 points in 17.4 minutes per contest with a shooting line of .449/.357/.707.
Recognizing that Whitmore wasn’t part of their long-term plans, the Rockets traded him to the Wizards during the 2025 offseason in exchange for a pair of second-round picks. Through his first 21 games in Washington D.C., he averaged 9.2 PPG on .456/.286/.742 shooting.
There’s no indication at this point that the blood clot in his shoulder will threaten Whitmore’s career. Victor Wembanyama, Brandon Ingram, and Ausar Thompson are among the current NBA players who have fully recovered and return to action after facing similar diagnoses.
As cap expert Yossi Gozlan notes (via Twitter), January 15 is the final day for NBA teams to apply for disabled player exceptions. A DPE for Whitmore would be worth $1,769,880, half of his ’25/26 salary.
Domantas Sabonis (Knee) Could Return Friday For Kings
Three-time All-Star center Domantas Sabonis was a full participant during Thursday’s practice and the Kings are optimistic he could return as soon as Friday’s game against Washington, reports Sean Cunningham of KCRA News (Twitter video link).
Sabonis will be listed as questionable for tomorrow’s contest vs. the Wizards, a league source tells James Ham of TheKingsBeat.com (Twitter link).
Sabonis, 29, has been out of action since November 16 due to a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. He has missed Sacramento’s last 27 games with the injury.
The Lithuanian big man has led the league in rebounds per game each of the past three seasons. In 11 games in 2025/26, Sabonis averaged 17.2 points, 12.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.2 steals in 33.2 minutes per contest.
The 11-30 Kings struggled mightily this season, but they’ve played better of late, currently holding their first three-game winning streak of the season. They’ve beaten three projected playoff teams — the Rockets, Lakers and Knicks — during the ongoing homestand, which wraps up next Wednesday against Toronto.
Sabonis’ name has popped up in several trade rumors this season with Sacramento near the bottom of the NBA’s standings. He’s on a lucrative long-term contract that runs through ’27/28.
Mavericks Sign Jeremiah Robinson-Earl To 10-Day Deal
4:34 pm: Robinson-Earl’s 10-day hardship contract is now official, per the Mavericks (Twitter link).
2:47 pm: The Mavericks have signed forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl to a 10-day contract, reports Christian Clark of The Athletic (Twitter link). While Dallas has yet to formally confirm the agreement, Clark says it’s a done deal and that Robinson-Earl will be active on Thursday vs. Utah.
The Mavericks have a full 15-man standard roster but won’t need to waive anyone to make room for Robinson-Earl. They’ve been granted a hardship exception, Clark explains, allowing them to carry a 16th man for the time being.
A team qualifies for a hardship exception if it has at least four players who have missed three or more consecutive games and are expected to be sidelined for at least two more weeks. Big man Anthony Davis has now been out for three games due to his hand injury, so he meets that criteria, as do Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II, and Dante Exum.
In addition to those players dealing with longer-term injuries, the Mavs may be missing a few more regulars on the wing and in the frontcourt on Thursday. Cooper Flagg (left ankle sprain) and Max Christie (illness) are considered doubtful to play, while Daniel Gafford (right ankle sprain) and P.J. Washington (right ankle injury management) are listed as questionable.
Robinson-Earl, 25, has appeared in 214 total regular season games for Oklahoma City, New Orleans, and Indiana since making his NBA debut in 2021. In 17 games for the Pacers earlier this season, the 6’8″ forward averaged 4.6 points and 5.2 rebounds in 17.6 minutes per night, but made just 34.9% of his field goal attempts, well below his career rate.
Robinson-Earl signed a pair of hardship 10-day contracts with Indiana in November, then was retained on a rest-of-season deal when those contracts expired. However, that new deal was non-guaranteed and he was later waived to make room on the 15-man roster for Garrison Mathews.
In recent weeks, Robinson-Earl – who was with the Mavericks during the preseason – joined the Texas Legends and has been a standout for Dallas’ G League affiliate. In 11 regular season outings at the NBAGL level, he has posted averages of 19.3 PPG and 11.7 RPG with improved shooting numbers (.522/.347/.944).
The Mavericks entered the day operating about $1.3MM below their second-apron hard cap. Robinson-Earl will carry a cap hit of $131,970, moving the team’s salary slightly closer to that ceiling.
And-Ones: Caboclo, All-Star Teams, Rising Stars, More
Former NBA forward Bruno Caboclo has signed a rest-of-season contract with Dubai Basketball, the EuroLeague team announced in a press release.
The 20th overall pick in the 2014 draft, Caboclo spent seven years in the NBA, last suiting up for Houston in 2020/21. The 30-year-old spent last season in Israel with Hapoel Tel Aviv, won the FIBA AmeriCup tournament with his native Brazil over the summer, and was sidelined to open ’25/26 due to a back injury.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- ESPN’s Tim Bontemps has made his picks for the 2026 All-Star teams, identifying nine locks from the Eastern Conference and 10 locks in the West, with five “bubble” candidates in each conference. Bontemps makes Pacers forward Pascal Siakam his final pick in the East over Desmond Bane and Michael Porter Jr., with Suns guard Devin Booker claiming his last spot in the West over Los Angeles stars Kawhi Leonard, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves.
- Carmelo Anthony, Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, and Austin Rivers have been named honorary head coaches for the NBA’s 2026 Rising Stars event at All-Star weekend, the league announced (Twitter link). NBA rookies and sophomores will comprise three of the teams, with the fourth squad made up of G League standouts.
- Bobby Marks and Kevin Pelton of ESPN identify one trade candidate to watch on each NBA roster, ranging from big names like Ja Morant and Domantas Sabonis to under-the-radar trade candidates like Celtics big man Chris Boucher and Clippers forward Kobe Brown.
- In another story for ESPN, Marks takes a look at several of the most valuable traded draft picks for 2026, as well as outlining how certain teams could benefit from various convoluted swaps. Our breakdown of 2026’s traded first-round picks can be found right here.
Rory Maher contributed to this story.
Central Notes: Bulls, Cunningham, Duren, Pistons, Mitchell
The Bulls‘ front office went nearly three years (from August 2021 to June 2024) without making a trade involving a player, but the team has been a little more active on the trade market in the past year-and-a-half. According to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times, there’s a sense that trend could continue this season.
As Cowley explains, league sources have described executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas as more transparent in trade talks and more realistic in terms of his asking prices since last season’s trade deadline. Rival executives have gotten the sense that Karnisovas is open for business this winter, with the Bulls once again hovering just below .500 and more than half of their roster on expiring contracts.
Karnisovas is starting to feel more pressure from Bulls higher-ups to get the team pointed in the right direction, according to Cowley, who says the team has been hurt by too many “passive” decisions in recent years.
We have more from around the Central:
- After four days off, the banged-up Pistons will be getting some reinforcements and should be closer to full strength for their game against Phoenix on Thursday, tweets Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press. Point guard Cade Cunningham is off the injury report and will be available after missing two games due to a right wrist contusion, while center Jalen Duren is considered probable to play after being sidelined for four games with a sprained right ankle. Forward Tobias Harris (left hip sprain) and big man Isaiah Stewart (illness) are also listed as probable to return following brief absences.
- Hunter Patterson and John Hollinger of The Athletic team up to consider potential Pistons moves ahead of the trade deadline, as well as how the team might create room on the 15-man roster for two-way standout Daniss Jenkins. Hollinger suggests that Detroit still needs to find a long-term answer at power forward, while Patterson hears from league sources that the front office is expected to be “opportunistic but not aggressive.”
- Cavaliers star Donovan Mitchell was born in New York, but he said in a video diary for Andscape that he’d like to play for the World team if he makes this year’s All-Star Game, pointing to his Panamanian roots on his mother’s side. “I do think I should be on the World team,” Mitchell said (YouTube link). “But I don’t think people look at me as like a Panamanian basketball player. But I do. I would love to be on the World team if I got a chance. If not, I’m not tripping. Don’t get me wrong. But I definitely want to show love to my Panamanian roots and my people in Panama.”
Western Rumors: Pelicans, Rockets, Clippers, Suns, Blazers
Although the Pelicans have turned away teams expressing interest in forward Trey Murphy III and Herbert Jones, potential trade partners who have talked to New Orleans have gotten the impression the club is open to moving center Yves Missi and/or swingman Jordan Hawkins, reports Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).
After starting 67 games and averaging 26.8 minutes per night as a rookie, Missi has made just seven starts and is averaging 18.2 MPG this season, having fallen behind newcomer Derik Queen on the frontcourt depth chart. As for Hawkins, the former 14th overall pick is having his worst NBA season, averaging just 4.4 points in 14.2 minutes per game, with a 30.3% mark on three-point tries.
While Hawkins likely wouldn’t have much value on the trade market, the Pelicans could potentially extract a decent return for Missi, who had a solid first year in 2024/25. Fischer confirms the Pacers have inquired on the big man, as previously reported by Michael Scotto.
Meanwhile, some of the teams interested in Murphy and Jones continue to hold out hope that the Pelicans are just posturing when they say they aren’t trading either of them this season, but Fischer believes the Pels’ stance is real, given how strongly they’ve rebuffed inquiries on those players so far.
Here are a few more Western Conference rumors from Fischer:
- The Rockets have dropped four of their last six games and have gone just 8-9 since their 15-5 start, but Fischer doesn’t get a sense that Houston is panicking at all, pointing out that the club played 23 of its first 36 games on the road. According to Fischer, the Rockets’ struggles would probably have to worsen considerably for the team to feel any urgency to acquire another ball-handler, especially since there’s still a chance Fred VanVleet could return from his ACL tear for the playoffs.
- When the Clippers got off to a 6-21 start this season, there were teams optimistic that James Harden and Ivica Zubac would be on the trade block this winter, but those hopes have “faded considerably” with L.A. winning 11 of 13 games to reenter the postseason race, Fischer writes.
- Rival executives are keeping a close eye on the Suns and Trail Blazers, per Fischer. Phoenix has won nine of its past 12 games, while Portland won seven of eight before losing to New York and Golden State this week. There’s curiosity about whether one or both of those teams could emerge as a “sneaky” buyer at the trade deadline, Fischer explains, observing that both the Suns and Blazers have multiple mid-tier contracts that could be used as trade chips in various kinds of deals.