Raptors Rumors: Poeltl, Davis, Gafford, Bitadze, Sabonis, More
The Raptors have signaled to potential trade partners that they’re interested in upgrading their frontcourt, but they’re not looking to part with current center Jakob Poeltl in a potential deal, reports Jake Fischer of The Stein Line (Substack link).
Poeltl, who signed an extension in the offseason and will become trade-eligible on January 7, has struggled to perform at his usual level this fall — his 10.1 points and 8.0 rebounds per game are his lowest marks since 2020/21, and his on/off numbers haven’t been nearly as strong as in the past. He has been battling a nagging back issue, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (Twitter video link), who confirmed during a TV appearance that Toronto would ideally like to add more frontcourt depth while hanging onto Poeltl.
Whether the Raptors look to add a minor depth piece or are prepared to roll the dice on a higher-impact (and higher-salary) player could come down to how they perform in the coming weeks, leading up to the February 5 trade deadline, Fischer writes.
According to Fischer, the Raptors and Hawks are viewed as the teams that have had the most interest in Mavericks big man Anthony Davis, with Atlanta viewed as a longer shot due to the fact that Dallas likely wouldn’t have much interest in Trae Young or Kristaps Porzingis as the centerpiece of a deal. The Hawks also have “zero intention” of including their valuable 2026 first-round pick (the most favorable of the Bucks’ and Pelicans’ selections) in an offer, Fischer adds.
While that could open up the door for the Raptors to become the frontrunner for Davis, Lewenberg – echoing earlier reporting from Michael Grange – suggests Toronto may have more interest in another Mavs big man, Daniel Gafford, and have “already checked in” on Gafford. Like Grange, Lewenberg also mentions Magic center Goga Bitadze as a possible target for the Raptors.
If the Raptors do aim higher, Davis isn’t their only potential target. Fischer hears from sources with knowledge of the team’s thinking that Toronto also has some interest in Kings center Domantas Sabonis, and adds that the Raptors would likely be among the teams inquiring on Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo if he ends up on the trade block.
Here’s more on the Raptors:
- According to Lewenberg, the odds of the Raptors making an in-season deal are “pretty high.” Besides seeking frontcourt help, the team would also like to avoid being a taxpayer, Lewenberg explains. Toronto is currently operating over the tax line by less than $1MM.
- If the Raptors make a “smaller-scale type of deal,” swingmen like Ochai Agbaji and Gradey Dick would be probable trade candidates, per Lewenberg, who notes that the club has a logjam on the wing.
- Lewenberg also points out that the Raptors have all their future first-round picks available if they decide to take a bigger swing on the trade market. The only future pick Toronto has traded away is its 2031 second-rounder (the club also owes its 2026 second-rounder to Indiana, but it’s top-55 protected, so it’s unlikely to change hands).
Disconnect Between Doug Christie, Kings Players?
It has been a disappointing season so far in Sacramento, where the Kings are off to a 6-20 start and are expected to explore the possibility of moving several of their veteran players ahead of the February 5 deadline, writes Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
While the Kings have been playing poorly for most of the year, they’ve especially struggled in recent weeks, having lost 15 of their last 18 games and seven of their past eight. Amid that extended slump, sources tell Spears that there’s a “disconnect” between some of the players on the roster and head coach Doug Christie and his coaching staff.
Christie, who took over as the Kings’ head coach midway through the 2024/25 season after Mike Brown was fired, led the team to a 27-24 record to close out the year. Although Sacramento was quickly dispatched in the play-in round and overhauled its front office in the spring, Christie was retained and given the head coaching job on a permanent basis under new general manager Scott Perry.
After one stretch of losses in early November, Christie ripped into his team for what he referred to as a “shameful” effort. He has eased off on that sort of public criticism of his players in recent weeks despite a lack of improvement in the standings, presumably opting to take a different tack as he attempts to get the most out of his roster.
Perry told Sam Amick of The Athletic a few weeks ago that he has “complete confidence” in Christie to “lead this team into better times,” suggesting that management isn’t considering a coaching change. And even if Christie isn’t seeing eye-to-eye with some of his players, the trade rumors constantly circulating around the team suggest that the head coach could end up sticking around Sacramento longer than some of those players will.
Still, the Kings didn’t exactly make a lucrative, long-term commitment to Christie when they named him their permanent coach in the spring. Amick reported in October that Christie’s new contract is only guaranteed for two seasons and he’s only making about $2MM annually during those two years, which is well below the average salary for an NBA head coach. In other words, if Sacramento does want to make another coaching change before Christie’s contract is up, the financial penalty wouldn’t be significant.
Pacers Sign Gabe McGlothan To 10-Day Contract
10:16 am: The signing is official, according to the Pacers.
8:57 am: The Pacers are promoting forward Gabe McGlothan from their G League affiliate to the NBA, according to Shams Charania of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that McGlothan will sign a 10-day contract with Indiana via a hardship exception.
McGlothan, 26, went undrafted out of Grand Canyon University in 2024 and spent his first professional season with the Nuggets’ G League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Gold.
Indiana’s NBAGL affiliate, the Noblesville Boom, acquired McGlothan’s returning rights from the Gold over the summer and he has taken on an increased role for the Boom this fall, averaging 16.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.9 steals in 33.8 minutes per game across 14 Tip-Off Tournament outings. The 6’6″ forward has knocked down 52.6% of his shots from the floor and 90.0% from the free throw line.
McGlothan will get his first look at the NBA level from a Pacers team that has been hit hard by injuries this season. Teams aren’t permitted to sign standard 10-day contracts until January, but hardship 10-day deals are permitted if a club has four players who have missed three or more consecutive games due to injuries and are expected to remain sidelined for at least two more weeks.
Indiana has qualified for hardship exceptions for most of the season, having signed Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, Cody Martin, and Garrison Mathews to a total of five 10-day contracts (Mathews has since signed a rest-of-season deal and is still on the roster). Currently, the Pacers are eligible for a hardship exception due to injuries affecting Tyrese Haliburton, Obi Toppin, Aaron Nesmith, and Ben Sheppard.
Injury Notes: Morant, Clarke, Gafford, LaVine, Green
It was another case of one step forward, one step back on Monday for the injury-plagued Grizzlies, who recently had star point guard Ja Morant return from a calf injury at the same time center Zach Edey was ruled out for four weeks due to an ankle issue.
The Grizzlies registered an impressive 18-point road win over the Clippers on Monday, but Morant exited the game with less than four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter after turning his left ankle on a drive to the basket (video links). According to Mark Medina (Twitter link), head coach Tuomas Iisalo said after the game that Morant “tweaked” his ankle and would undergo further evaluation, adding that he’s hopeful that the injury isn’t significant.
While the Grizzlies and their fans await an update on Morant, there’s positive news on another injured player. Big man Brandon Clarke, who has yet to play this season after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure on his right knee in September, was initially upgraded to doubtful for Monday’s game before being ruled out. Clarke is trending toward making his return as soon as Wednesday in Minnesota, tweets Michael Wallace of Grind City Media.
Here are a few more injury-related notes from around the NBA:
- With Dereck Lively II out for the season, the Mavericks figure to lean more heavily on center Daniel Gafford, but Gafford has been dealing with an injury of his own, having repeatedly aggravated a right ankle sprain, writes Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News. Gafford was able to play on Monday after a three-game absence, but was limited to 13 minutes in an overtime loss for a Mavs team also missing Anthony Davis (left calf contusion). “It’s a bit of a balanced scale,” Gafford said before returning on Monday. “I want to be out there on the floor as much as I can. But at the same time, you have to listen to your body, especially through the course of a season. I just want to come back and be able to do the things I’m able to do out there on the floor and make an impact. I don’t want to be out there being a liability and hurting the team more than helping them.”
- After missing last Thursday’s game vs. Denver due to a thumb injury, Kings guard Zach LaVine returned on Sunday in Minnesota, but played just 16 minutes before injuring his left ankle and exiting the game. As Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee writes, LaVine came out onto the court during halftime warmups after sustaining the injury in the second quarter, but hobbled off the floor and was ruled out for the rest of the night shortly thereafter. It’s unclear if the banged-up guard will miss additional time.
- Suns head coach Jordan Ott admitted that the team is playing it “pretty safe” with Jalen Green‘s right hamstring strain after he aggravated the injury in early November, two games into his season. “We’ve got to be in the mindset that this is a young athlete that is super valuable,” Ott said, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. “We’re going to take it day-by-day, week-by-week, but he has made really, really good progress.” Green has been doing some on-court work, according to Ott. A previous report indicated the Suns guard is trending toward a return shortly after Christmas.
Players Traded After Tuesday Can’t Be Re-Aggregated By Feb. 5 Deadline
As we explain in our glossary entry on salary aggregation, when a team trades for a player by matching salaries or using a cap exception, that team is typically ineligible to aggregate the player’s salary in a second trade for the next two months.
However, the NBA’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement includes one exception to that rule. A player traded on or before December 16 can always be “re-aggregated” on the day before – or the day of – that season’s trade deadline.
Any player who is acquired in a trade via salary-matching or an exception after Tuesday will be ineligible to be aggregated at this season’s Feb. 5 trade deadline.
We saw this rule in action during the 2024/25 season when the over-the-cap Warriors acquired Dennis Schröder from Brooklyn on December 15, then re-aggregated him at the February 6 trade deadline as part of their package for Jimmy Butler. If Golden State had acquired Schröder from Brooklyn on December 17, his salary couldn’t have been aggregated with those of Andrew Wiggins, Kyle Anderson, and Lindy Waters to match Butler’s incoming cap hit.
Now, there are two important points worth clarifying here. The first is what exactly it means to “aggregate” a contract.
Our glossary entry covers this rule in more depth, but aggregating a player’s salary with another salary means combining the two cap figures for matching purposes. For instance, a team operating over the cap and below the tax aprons can’t trade a $15MM player for a $35MM player, but that team could aggregate its $15MM player with a $20MM player in order to legally acquire the $35MM player.
Crucially, sending out multiple players in the same trade doesn’t necessarily mean they have to be aggregated. For example, if a team sends out a $15MM player and a $5MM player for a single player earning $15MM, there’s no need to aggregate the two outgoing salaries, since the $15MM player is enough to legally match the incoming $15MM salary on his own. So a player traded on Dec. 20 could still be flipped at the deadline in a multi-player trade — his salary simply couldn’t be combined with another player’s for matching purposes within that deal.
Only teams operating below the second tax apron are permitted to aggregate salaries, meaning this rule – and the Dec. 16 exception to it – won’t matter much for the Cavaliers, the NBA’s lone second-apron team this season. Even if the Cavs were to trade for a player today, that player couldn’t be aggregated at the deadline unless Cleveland was able to shed enough salary to move below the second apron.
The second point worth clarifying is that this restriction doesn’t apply to players who are acquired using cap room. The Nets are the only club currently operating under the cap, but they have more than $15MM in space, meaning they’re in a great position to trade for one or more players without sending out any matching salary.
Let’s say the Nets use their remaining cap room to acquire a player earning $14MM. Even if they make that trade on February 5, they could turn around and aggregate their new player’s salary with, say, Terance Mann‘s $15.5MM cap hit the very next day in order to acquire a player earning $30MM. Because the $14MM player was acquired using cap room and not using an exception or by salary-matching, Brooklyn wouldn’t face the two-month aggregation restriction.
There has been no indication that any trades are on the verge of being completed in the next 15 hours, but if they are, it’s worth keeping this rule in mind, since it could be a key reason for the timing of the move.
Hoops Rumors Chat Transcript: 12/15/2025
Hoops Rumors hosted a live chat today at 3:00 pm Central time (4:00 pm Eastern).
Five Newly Eligible Trade Candidates To Watch
Several dozen players around the NBA became eligible to be traded on Monday for the first time since signing as free agents this offseason. The majority of those players won't be dealt this season, and most of the ones who are traded won't be moved until close to the February 5 deadline.
Still, it's not uncommon for teams to complete deals on or shortly after December 15. That doesn't mean we'll see a flurry of action before Christmas, but it's entirely possible the first in-season trade of 2025/26 will be agreed upon this week.
Here are newly trade-eligible players who are worth keeping a close eye on in the coming days and weeks:
79 NBA Players Newly Eligible To Be Traded
Today is December 15, which means that – by our count – 79 NBA players who signed as free agents this offseason have officially become eligible to be traded.
The list of newly trade-eligible players, which can be found right here, features a number of guys who almost certainly aren’t going anywhere this season, like Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard.
However, it also includes some players whose names have already popped up in trade speculation in the months since they were signed. The most obvious name in that group is Clippers point guard Chris Paul, who has unofficially parted ways with the team but remains on the roster for the time being. Paul is now eligible to be dealt.
Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Myles Turner, Julius Randle, Fred VanVleet are among the other biggest names who are newly trade-eligible as of Monday.
Fourteen of the players on the list, including Lillard, Harden, and VanVleet, can’t be moved without their consent, since they have the ability to veto trades this season. The Rockets, Clippers, and Bucks are each carrying multiple players who fit that bill.
Six newly trade-eligible players are still on non-guaranteed contracts, including a pair of Spurs. If one of those players is included in a trade prior to the league-wide salary guarantee date of January 10, only the non-guaranteed portion of his salary would count for matching purposes for the team trading him away (the team acquiring him would still have to account for the player’s full cap hit).
[RELATED: Trade Rules For Non-Guaranteed Salaries]
Finally, it’s worth noting that there are still a number of recently signed players around the NBA who remain ineligible to be dealt. Many will become trade-eligible on January 15, while others will see their trade restrictions lift on unique dates.
Typically, teams wait until closer to the trade deadline (February 5) to make their moves rather than striking deals as soon as trade season unofficially opens on December 15, so we should count on most of the in-season trade activity occurring in January and February.
Still, it’s worth noting that a pair of trades were officially finalized on December 15 last season, so it wouldn’t come as a major surprise if two or more teams come together for a deal sooner rather than later.
A player who is traded on or before December 16 can be “re-aggregated” (ie. have his salary combined with another player’s salary for matching purposes) in a second deal prior to the trade deadline. The Warriors did this with Dennis Schröder last season, acquiring him from Brooklyn on December 15, then sending him to Detroit in the five-time Jimmy Butler blockbuster at the deadline.
Grizzlies’ Ja Morant To Return On Friday
5:37 pm: Morant is available tonight, the team confirmed (via Twitter). According to Cole, the Grizzlies will manage Morant’s minutes in a “smart way” (Twitter link).
11:32 am: Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant is on track to return to action on Friday vs. Utah, having been upgraded from questionable to probable on the team’s injury report, per Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link).
Morant has been sidelined for Memphis’ past 10 games due to a right calf strain, but appears set to suit up for the first time since November 15, barring a last-minute setback. Head coach Tuomas Iisalo had said on Thursday that Morant went through a full practice on Thursday and was trending toward a return on Friday.
Morant got off to a slow start this season. In 11 healthy games, he averaged 18.9 points, 8.1 assists, and 3.7 rebounds per contest, but shot just 35.2% from the floor and 16.7% on three-pointers as Memphis went 4-7. He also had a disagreement with the coaching staff that led to a one-game, team-imposed suspension.
During his injury absence, Morant earned kudos from Iisalo for his engagement and leadership on the sidelines, but it will interesting to be see how his return impacts the Grizzlies on the court. As Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports details, Memphis has been more productive offensively and is moving the ball better without Morant on the floor so far this season.
Unfortunately for the Grizzlies, they still won’t get a chance to see their full starting lineup on the court together. Center Zach Edey, who returned following offseason ankle surgery around the same time Morant got hurt, will now miss the next four weeks due to nagging issues related to that same ankle. Morant and Edey have spent just five minutes on the court together this fall.
As Cole writes for The Memphis Commercial Appeal, several fans at FedExForum on Friday will be there thanks to Morant, who bought 250 tickets for the game against the Jazz to give out to fans earlier this week.
Mavs’ Dante Exum Undergoes Season-Ending Knee Surgery
December 12: Exum has undergone successful season-ending surgery, the Mavs announced on Friday (via Twitter).
November 20: Dante Exum‘s 2025/26 season has come to an end before it even began, according to the Mavericks, who announced today (via Twitter) that the veteran guard will undergo season-ending surgery.
According to the Mavs, Exum – who had yet to play at all this fall – has continued to deal with complications related to an offseason procedure on his right knee. It has been determined that a follow-up surgery is necessary to address the issue.
It’s the latest in a long line of injuries that have limited Exum’s availability over the course of his professional career. After playing all 82 games as a rookie, the former fifth overall pick missed his entire second NBA season in 2015/16 due to a torn ACL, then was plagued by shoulder, ankle, and knee issues in subsequent years.
Exum rebuilt his value by playing in Europe from 2021-23, then returned stateside during the 2023 offseason and has been in Dallas since then. The 30-year-old has been a very effective role player for the Mavs when healthy, averaging 8.0 points, 2.8 assists, and 2.4 rebounds in 19.5 minutes per game, with a shooting line of .516/.472/.768.
However, he has made just 75 appearances since the start of the 2023/24 season, including just 20 in ’24/25 due to right wrist surgery and a broken left hand.
With the Mavericks’ front office very much in the news as of late, the team’s handling of Exum in recent months deserves some scrutiny, notes Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal (Twitter links).
As Afseth points out, the Mavs never publicly disclosed Exum’s offseason knee surgery before today and had to use the stretch provision to waive Olivier-Maxence Prosper‘s guaranteed $3MM salary in order to create enough room under their hard cap to bring back Exum on a guaranteed minimum-salary deal. Given Exum’s injury history, that was a risky move, especially considering that Dallas badly needed backcourt depth while Kyrie Irving continued to recover from his ACL tear.
While the Mavs could waive Exum to open up a spot on their 15-man roster, they won’t have enough room under that hard cap to sign a replacement until January, barring a separate cost-cutting move. If Exum remains on the roster, Dallas could apply for a disabled player exception, but it would be worth just half of the guard’s salary, making it too small to be of much real use.