Wizards Reportedly Trae Young’s Preferred Landing Spot
The Wizards are the top team on Trae Young‘s list of preferred destinations, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, who stated during an appearance on NBA Today (Twitter video link) that the Hawks have gained some traction in their trade talks with Washington.
NBA insider Marc Stein was the first to report earlier this week that the Wizards and Hawks had engaged in negotiations about a possible trade that would send Young to Washington and veteran guard CJ McCollum to Atlanta.
Subsequent reporting has suggested that the Hawks are willing to be patient as they gauge Young’s trade market and that the two Southeast rivals still have work to do to figure out what the rest of a deal would look like — Washington is reportedly seeking draft compensation from Atlanta and is said to be reluctant to part with the sort of young talent the Hawks would want along with McCollum.
While other teams are reportedly monitoring Young’s situation, the Wizards are the only club confirmed to be a viable suitor so far, so the fact that the 27-year-old would be on board with a move to D.C. bodes well for a potential deal.
Although Washington isn’t exactly a title contender, the rebuilding team has played better as of late, with five wins in its past seven games, and its young core could benefit from the addition of an elite play-maker like Young, despite concerns about his defense.
Additionally, the Wizards have no significant multiyear contracts on their cap, meaning they’re well positioned to accommodate Young’s $49MM player option for 2026/27 — or a potential contract extension that replaces that option, which is presumably the outcome the four-time All-Star and his camp are hoping for.
As Charania notes, Young also has a connection to Wizards senior vice president of player personnel Travis Schlenk, who drafted the former Oklahoma Sooners star when he was the general manager of the Hawks.
Young is currently on the shelf due to a right quad contusion and will miss a sixth consecutive game on Wednesday when the Hawks host the Pelicans.
Injury Notes: Oubre, Watford, Vincent, LeBron, Wemby, Harden, More
The Sixers are expected to get a pair of forwards back from injuries on Wednesday vs. Washington, having upgraded Kelly Oubre Jr. and Trendon Watford to probable after they participated in today’s shootaround, tweets Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Oubre has been out since November 14 due to a left knee sprain, while Watford – who has been recovering from a left adductor strain – last played on November 25.
Both Sixers vets had been playing some of the best basketball of their careers before going down with injuries. Oubre started all 12 games he played in the fall and scored 16.8 points per game with a career-high 49.7% field goal percentage. Watford averaged 8.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assists in 20.4 minutes per game with a .534/.389/.800 shooting line in 14 appearances (four starts).
Here are more injury updates from across the NBA:
- Lakers guard Gabe Vincent (lumbar back strain) is no longer on the injury report and appears on track to play on Wednesday vs. San Antonio after missing the past nine games, per Dan Woike of The Athletic (Twitter link). Vincent last suited up on December 14.
- Lakers forward LeBron James (left foot joint arthritis and right sciatica) and Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama (left knee bone bruise) are both listed as questionable to play on Wednesday. Wembanyama returned from a two-game absence on Tuesday vs. Memphis and seemed fine after the game, according to Michael C. Wright of ESPN, who says (via Twitter) that the plan is to have Wembanyama play vs. Los Angeles if he feels up to it.
- Clippers guard James Harden, who sat out on Monday due to shoulder stiffness, is probable to return on Wednesday vs. the Knicks, who will still be without Josh Hart (right ankle sprain), tweets James L. Edwards III of The Athletic. Hart has missed New York’s past six games, four of which were losses.
- Magic guard Jalen Suggs, who has been out for two games with a right knee MCL contusion, hasn’t progressed to contact or on-court work yet, head coach Jamahl Mosley said on Tuesday (Twitter link via Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel). “Just slowly seeing how he responds to the treatment that he does day-to-day,” Mosley said.
- While there’s still no word on a potential timeline or target date for his return, Kyrie Irving traveled with the Mavericks to Sacramento this week and completed a workout with assistant coach Phil Handy following the team’s shootaround on Tuesday, writes Grant Afseth of The Dallas Hoops Journal. Irving’s presence on the three-game road trip is a sign of progress, according to Afseth, who adds that forward P.J. Washington is considered day-to-day after sitting out Saturday’s game with a right ankle sprain.
Nets To Retain Tyrese Martin, Jalen Wilson Through Guarantee Deadline
The Nets won’t waive wing Tyrese Martin or forward Jalen Wilson prior to this week’s salary guarantee deadline, according to reports from Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter links) and Michael Scotto of HoopsHype (Twitter link).
Both Martin and Wilson have non-guaranteed contracts, so Brooklyn could’ve avoided locking in their full-season salaries by placing them on waivers on Wednesday. However, the Nets won’t do so, which means Martin will earn his full $2,191,897 salary and Wilson will make his full $2,221,677.
Martin, a former second-round pick out of UConn, signed a two-way contract with the Nets ahead of the 2024/25 season, then was promoted to the standard roster last February.
After he averaged 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game on .406/.351/.793 shooting in 60 games (11 starts) last season, the 26-year-old has seen his production slip a little in 2025/26, but he’s still a regular rotation player, with averages of 7.4 PPG and 3.0 RPG on .385/.322/.708 shooting through 29 contests (six starts).
Wilson, selected by the Nets with the 51st overall pick in the 2023 draft, opened his NBA career on a two-way deal, but has been on Brooklyn’s standard roster since March 2024.
The 25-year-old averaged 25.7 minutes per night and started 22 of his 79 games in ’24/25, but has played a lesser role this season, coming off the bench in all 23 appearances averaging 13.9 MPG. He’s contributing 4.9 PPG and 1.0 RPG in his reserve role.
While many of the players on non-guaranteed contracts were considered locks to remain with their respective teams through the salary guarantee deadline, the Nets could conceivably made a move involving either Martin or Wilson, so their decision to hang onto both is noteworthy.
Brooklyn won’t open up a spot on its 15-man roster but still has more than $15MM in cap room that could be used to take on unwanted salary at the trade deadline. Both Martin and Wilson, meanwhile, will be eligible for restricted free agency during the 2026 offseason, assuming they finish out their current contracts.
Trade Rumors: Trae, Dillingham, Wizards, Kuminga, Warriors
The Wizards have been monitoring Trae Young‘s situation in Atlanta since the Hawks opted against extending him during the offseason and have engaged in “serious” discussions about a potential trade, confirms Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link). However, Atlanta isn’t rushing into an agreement, since the front office wants to wait to see if other suitors emerge in the weeks leading up to the February 5 trade deadline.
So far, Fischer writes, it’s unclear whether any other teams have joined Washington in actively exploring a deal for Young. Fischer hears that the point guard’s camp has suggested the Timberwolves and Nets as two potential trade partners that would appeal to Young, but neither of those teams has reciprocated that interest to this point.
The Wolves, in fact, are unlikely to pursue any high-priced point guard, Fischer writes, explaining that Minnesota wants to upgrade the position but is more focused on players with more manageable cap hits.
Fischer points to Mike Conley‘s $10.8MM expiring deal and Rob Dillingham‘s rookie scale deal (which pays him $6.8MM this season) as contracts that the Wolves could use for matching purposes in that sort of trade, noting that they aren’t opposed to discussing Dillingham, who hasn’t yet developed into a reliable rotation player.
Here are a few more trade rumors from around the NBA:
- If the Wizards and Hawks do make a trade involving Young, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if the 27-year-old and his new team agree to a contract extension that replaces his $49MM player option for 2026/27 with a lower cap hit and tacks on at least a couple new years to his deal, Fischer writes. League insiders that Fischer spoke to about that subject suggested the extension offer would likely have to be worth $100MM+ to convince Young to decline that $49MM option.
- Ben Golliver of The Washington Post lays out the cases for and against a Wizards trade for Young.
- The Warriors have had many trade conversations about forward Jonathan Kuminga, but have yet to make “substantial movement” toward a deal, league sources tell Anthony Slater of ESPN. Team sources have said recently that Golden State would be willing to hang onto the 23-year-old beyond the trade deadline if no appealing offers materialize, according to Slater, though he notes that may be posturing. The Warriors have also been unwilling to take on contracts that extend beyond the current season if they consider them to have negative value, Slater adds.
- League sources tell Slater that the Warriors have “sniffed around” the center market. If Al Horford – who has played better since Christmas than he did earlier in the season – stays healthy and continues to improve, the front office may feel less inclined to target a big man at the trade deadline, Slater notes.
- Sam Quinn of CBS Sports takes a look at the teams currently operating in luxury tax territory and considers which ones are the best bets to try to duck below the tax line at the trade deadline — and which players could be on the move in those types of trades.
Mavericks Granted DPEs For Dereck Lively II, Dante Exum
January 7: The Mavericks’ requests for DPEs have been granted, per Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Twitter link). As outlined below, the exceptions are worth $2,626,680 (for Lively) and $1,148,137 (for Exum).
December 29: The Mavericks have applied to the NBA for disabled player exceptions for both Dereck Lively II and Dante Exum, who have suffered season-ending injuries, according to Marc Stein of The Stein Line (Twitter link).
The DPEs would provide half of each player’s salary, so they would be modest in both cases, although they could offer some flexibility later in the season. The figures would amount to $2,626,680 for Lively (who’s making $5,253,360 on his rookie scale deal) and $1,148,137 for Exum (who has a veteran’s minimum contract worth $2,296,274).
Even if the exceptions are granted, Dallas wouldn’t be able to surpass its second-apron hard cap. The team is currently about $1.29MM below that cap.
Lively, 21, has been experiencing right foot issues since suffering a fracture in his foot/ankle area last January. It kept him out of action for two months and required him to undergo surgery in July in an effort to fix the issue. He continued to be bothered by health problems, missing a nine-game stretch in October and November due to a right knee sprain, then battling nagging discomfort in his right foot.
The decision was made to have him undergo season-ending foot surgery earlier this month.
Lively, who played a huge role in Dallas’ run to the NBA Finals as a rookie, wound up playing just seven games in his third NBA season, averaging 4.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 16.4 minutes per night.
Exum, 30, who re-signed with the team in August after battling injuries last season, wasn’t able to play at all due to complications related to an offseason procedure on his right knee. He underwent follow-up surgery earlier this month.
Dallas would have until March 10 to use either DPE to acquire a player for the rest of the season. A roster spot would have to be created, and the team can’t fit a new signing under its hard cap until January 6.
Hawks Waive Malik Williams
The Hawks have waived center Malik Williams, who had been on a two-way contract with the team, according to a press release. Because the move occurred prior to the league-wide salary guarantee date, Williams will receive just a prorated portion of his two-way salary.
A former Louisville standout, Williams opened this season with Atlanta’s G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, and was promoted to a two-way deal last month following season-ending injuries to Hawks two-way players Jacob Toppin and Eli Ndiaye.
Although Williams was technically under contract with the NBA club in recent weeks, he remained in the G League for most of that time. The 27-year-old big man was active for just three games with Atlanta and didn’t see any action in any of them.
Assuming he doesn’t catch on with a new NBA team upon clearing waivers, Williams is expected to remain with the Skyhawks, who still hold his G League rights, tweets Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Williams has played well at the NBAGL level in 19 outings this season for College Park, averaging 16.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 28.0 minutes per game. However, he’s shooting just 39.9% from the floor, due in large part to the fact that he’s launching a career-high 7.1 three-pointers per contest and making only 32.1% of them.
Atlanta now has an open two-way slot alongside forward Caleb Houstan and guard RayJ Dennis, whose recently signed two-way contract is a two-year deal.
Latest On Anthony Davis
Although the Mavericks will continue fielding calls on Anthony Davis, team sources insist to Christian Clark and Sam Amick of The Athletic that the front office feels no urgency to move the star big man. As Clark and Amick explain, the Mavs have signaled that they’d like to see Davis play alongside Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg and can envision a scenario in which he stays in Dallas long-term.
A report earlier this week indicated that Davis’ preference would be to remain in Dallas and sign a contract extension with the Mavericks. However, AD’s representatives at Klutch Sports, led by CEO Rich Paul, aren’t convinced the Mavs are interested in extending their client and wouldn’t mind getting him to a team more likely to pursue a new contract agreement, league sources tell The Athletic.
While Davis and his camp haven’t requested a trade, Clark and Amick suggest that Paul has encouraged the Mavericks to be “more aggressive” in gauging the 32-year-old’s market rather than waiting for teams to call.
Here’s more from The Athletic’s latest report on where things stand with Davis:
- As previously reported, the Hawks and Raptors are among the teams with Davis on their radar, but it’s unclear how motivated either team will be to get a deal done with Dallas. Atlanta wouldn’t want to take on Davis’ contract without moving Trae Young, who doesn’t appeal to the Mavericks, Clark and Amick write, while a deal with Toronto would require the Mavs to take on significant multiyear money.
- As Amick wrote last week, the door isn’t completely closed on the idea of a trade sending Davis to Golden State. However, with the Warriors still “staunchly” opposed to giving up Jimmy Butler or Draymond Green in such a deal, there’s no feasible path to a salary-matching fit.
- The Bucks are among the teams to convey interest in Davis, league sources tell Clark and Amick. Milwaukee is probably a long shot though, since the club is short on appealing assets and also lacks sizable contracts for matching purposes.
- Many league insiders believe the Mavericks will have to wait until the offseason to find a deal they like for Davis, but there’s also a sense that the lack of dominant teams in the Eastern Conference could make one of those potential contenders more inclined to take a shot on Davis during the season, per Clark and Amick. “Every team in the East believes they’re an Anthony Davis away from making the (NBA) Finals,” a high-level source explained to The Athletic.
Wednesday Is Decision Day For Non-Guaranteed Contracts
The NBA’s league-wide salary guarantee date technically falls on January 10 each season, but January 7 always represents decision day for teams carrying players on non-guaranteed contracts.
A player with a non-guaranteed contract who is still on waivers as of Jan. 10 is assured of receiving his full salary, so in order to avoid that scenario, a team must cut that player on or before Jan. 7. As long as the player is placed on waivers by 4:00 pm Central time on Wednesday, he’ll clear waivers on Friday (Jan. 9), a day before his salary would become guaranteed.
A couple teams have already made moves with players on non-guaranteed contracts so far this week. The Pacers waived center Tony Bradley on Monday, while the Raptors cut big man Mo Bamba on Tuesday. More transactions may be on the way ahead of Wednesday’s deadline, but most of the players with non-guaranteed salaries around the NBA look pretty safe.
For instance, the Hornets aren’t about to waive Moussa Diabate, who has been their starting center as of late; the Mavericks aren’t going to cut Brandon Williams, who made a game-winning three-pointer on Tuesday vs. Sacramento. Those are just two of many players on non-guaranteed deals who have earned not just spots on their team’s roster but a regular place in the rotation.
Wednesday is also a big day for players on two-way contracts, who are subject to the same salary guarantee deadline and will receive their full salaries if they’re not cut today. That works out to $636,435 for players who have been under contract since the start of the season, and a prorated portion of that figure for players who have signed during the season.
A handful of two-way players have been waived within the past couple weeks – including Bulls guard Trentyn Flowers on Tuesday – and more could follow today. However, there’s less urgency for clubs to make moves involving two-way players, since those deals don’t count against the salary cap and won’t meaningfully impact a team’s roster and cap flexibility as the trade deadline nears.
The full list of players on non-guaranteed contracts is below, while the full list of players on two-way contracts can be found right here. The players listed below are earning minimum salaries unless otherwise noted.
Atlanta Hawks
- Vit Krejci
- Partially guaranteed for $1,500,000.
- N’Faly Dante
- Note: Dante would receive his full salary even if he’s waived due to his season-ending ACL tear.
- Mouhamed Gueye
- Keaton Wallace
Boston Celtics
- Jordan Walsh
- Partially guaranteed for $1,110,839.
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
Cleveland Cavaliers
- Dean Wade ($6,623,456)
- Partially guaranteed for $4,623,458.
- Thomas Bryant
- Craig Porter Jr.
Dallas Mavericks
Detroit Pistons
Golden State Warriors
Indiana Pacers
Miami Heat
- Terry Rozier ($26,643,031)
- Partially guaranteed for $24,924,126.
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New York Knicks
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
San Antonio Spurs
Washington Wizards
Central Notes: Buzelis, White, Mathurin, Feigin
The Bulls may still be wallowing in mediocrity but second-year forward Matas Buzelis continues to show improvement. He’s averaging 21.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.0 block per game in his first three January outings. He scored 26 points in a loss to the Celtics on Monday, making 9-of-12 field goal attempts.
‘‘I think the biggest thing with him that I’ve been the most pleased with and that’s been really consistent from him is he’s not holding the ball and dancing with it,’’ coach Billy Donovan said, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times. ‘‘He was decisive when he had it in space. Whether it was shooting the ball or driving the ball, he was decisive, and I feel like that’s how he has to play.’’
Buzelis says it’s all part of his learning process.
‘‘I just go out and hoop, try and be the best player I can be,’’ he said. ‘‘I play hard, and I believe in our team. It was just a matter of time and patience, just keep grinding. Just the comfort level, honestly. It’s only Year 2 for me. That’s not an excuse, but [I’m] still getting comfortable out there going against grown men. It feels like it’s just a matter of time, learning and learning.’’
Buzelis is listed as questionable to play against Detroit on Wednesday due to an illness, K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network tweets.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- Coby White is also questionable on Wednesday due to right calf injury management. White, an unrestricted free agent after the season, returned to action on Monday after missing the three previous games but struggled. He was held to five points and three assists while committing four turnovers on a minutes limit. “It’s pretty tough being in and out of the lineup, knowing you can only play a certain amount of minutes throughout the entire night,” White told Cowley. “It gets tough when you’re out there and you look up, ‘Damn, I only got like two minutes left and I know I’m coming out.’”
- Pacers coach Rick Carlisle indicated that Bennedict Mathurin has been dealing with right thumb pain for awhile, Tony East of Circle City Spin tweets. “It’s been bothering him. I don’t remember exactly when he did it. But it’s been a while, it’s been weeks,” Carlisle said. “When you keep getting hit, it’s on your shooting hand, it becomes more than a nuisance.” Carlisle reiterated that he’s unsure when Mathurin might return to action. Carlisle said a few days earlier that the fourth-year guard would be “out a while.”
- Peter Feigin is stepping down as the Bucks‘ president after a 12-season run overseeing the team’s business operations, according to The Associated Press. Josh Glessing, who has been working as the Haslam Sports Group’s chief of strategy and development, will replace him. The two will be working together over the next few months during the transition period.
Knicks Notes: Losing Streak, Brunson, Towns, Dolan, Brown, Yabusele
The Knicks were clobbered by the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons, 121-90, on Monday. Jalen Brunson had a team-high 25 points but no assists while committing six turnovers in the team’s fourth straight loss.
“We just gotta respond. A lot more needs to be said. We keep it internal,” he said, per ESPN’s Vincent Goodwill. “If we want to be the team we say we want to be, we have to be better, simple as that.”
Head coach Mike Brown said the Pistons physically dominated his club.
“It’s pretty simple, they just physically kicked our ass. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it,” he said. “We had 20 turnovers for 33 points. They were into us the whole game. And then for us, we did it in spurts. And versus a team like that, you can’t do it in spurts. It’s got to be 48 minutes. It’s just as simple as that.”
Here’s more on the Knicks:
- Karl-Anthony Towns scored in single digits for the fourth time this season after reaching double digits in all but one game last season under previous coach Tom Thibodeau. Towns is taking fewer shots under Brown’s offensive scheme. “Biggest adjustment is for me. Like Mike said, I make the biggest sacrifice,” Towns told Stefan Bondy of the New York Post. “We’re figuring it out. We’ve got a long flight, a practice tomorrow, we’ve got to sit down and figure out who we are and how we want to get back on track.”
- The Knicks got run out of Detroit’s home court almost immediately after owner James Dolan declared the Knicks, as presently constituted, were good enough to win a championship. The owner said he doesn’t anticipate a big move before the trade deadline next month, whether for Giannis Antetokounmpo or somebody else, but a few more performances like Monday’s could alter his thinking, Bondy opines.
- The Knicks are ranked 17th in the league defensively and Brown said “everything is on the table” regarding their defensive schemes, according to The Athletic’s James Edwards III. However, he also downplayed the losing streak to a certain extent. “You have to keep a perspective on it because you’re going to have ups and downs,” he said. “I’ve said this many times, ‘It’s not going to be just like this.’ When you do go down, you hope it’s not three, four or five games. That’s where we are now, but it’s not time to panic. We do have to make sure we are doing what we can do to help this group. Our guys have to try and take it to another level as a group, and not try to do too much, but take it to another level as a group in other areas.”
- Free agent pickup Guerschon Yabusele continues to play sparingly in his fourth season in the league. He’s highly motivated to exercise his $5.8MM option on next year’s deal, rather than returning to Europe, BasketNews.com relays. “If you play three years in the NBA, you get a lifetime pension. After four seasons, medical expenses are covered for life,” Yabusele told a French YouTuber. “And after five years, the medical coverage is extended to the entire family. I want to play for five years here in the NBA so that my family can benefit from that lifetime care. You never know what can happen in life.”