Woj, Lowe On D-Lo, Mavs, MPJ, Love, VanVleet, More
Approximately 120 players around the NBA became trade-eligible on Sunday, signaling the unofficial start of the NBA’s 2019/20 trade season. To celebrate the occasion, Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe hosted an ESPN special to survey the trade market, discussing which teams are most likely to make moves and which players are most likely to be dealt.
Here are several of the highlights from that discussion between Woj and Lowe:
Western Conference:
- The Warriors may field trade inquiries on D’Angelo Russell leading up to February’s trade deadline, but they’re unlikely to actively shop him and probably won’t move him before the 2020 offseason, according to Wojnarowski (video link).
- Wojnarowski believes the Mavericks would like to acquire a standout center to complement Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis (video link). He cites Montrezl Harrell as one player who might fit that bill, though Dallas would have to wait for the Clippers‘ big man to reach free agency.
- The Nuggets essentially view Michael Porter Jr. as “untouchable,” says Wojnarowski (video link).
- Wojnarowski and Lowe expect contenders to keep a close eye on Pelicans guards Jrue Holiday and J.J. Redick as the deadline nears (video link). According to Woj, Holiday loves New Orleans, but it’s not clear how patient he’ll be with the team’s rebuilding process.
- Woj and Lowe note that the Clippers pursued Marcus Morris in free agency and could have interest in him again on the trade market. Lowe wouldn’t be surprised if the club tries to see what it can get using a package of Maurice Harkless, Patrick Patterson, and its first-round pick (video link).
- Wojnarowski views 2019/20 as a pivotal year for the Rockets, adding that GM Daryl Morey seems to have given up trying to find a way to trade for Grizzlies wing Andre Iguodala after exploring multi-team scenarios earlier in the year (video link).
Eastern Conference:
- Wojnarowski thinks the best the Cavaliers can realistically expect in a Kevin Love trade is a protected first-round pick, an expiring salary, and another throw-in player (video link). Woj adds that it seems as if Love is “ready to go,” having lost patience with the rebuild in Cleveland.
- Count the Raptors and Heat among teams that will be reluctant to make any moves that compromise their 2021 cap flexibility (video links). According to Wojnarowski, Toronto wants to re-sign Fred VanVleet this summer, but continues to eye Giannis Antetokounmpo for ’21. As for the Heat, they seem less likely to trade young players for veterans than they have been in the past.
- Pistons owner Tom Gores “loves” Andre Drummond, but the club will soon have to have a serious conversation about whether to go all-in on the veteran center or whether to try to shop him, per Woj (video link).
- Lowe thinks players like Timberwolves forward Robert Covington and J.J. Redick will be on the Bucks‘ radar if they’re available, adding that Milwaukee appears willing to go over the tax line for the right deal (video link).
Mixed Opinions On Kevin Love’s Trade Value
Trade season is nearing and Kevin Love‘s name is again popping up. However, the latest tidbit isn’t particularly favorable to the Cavaliers. Jason Lloyd of The Athletic hears from multiple sources that the team is going to have a difficult time dealing Love because of his massive contract.
Love has three years and roughly $91MM left on his deal after this season and some teams are asking the Cavaliers to attach a first-rounder or other asset to the big man in order to move him. While that stance exists, it is not uniform throughout the league.
Cleveland is seeking a first-rounder in exchange for Love and Lloyd hears from one rival executive that the franchise may end up netting that asset in a trade. It may all depend on how much salary the Cavaliers are willing to take back in addition to the pick.
“I don’t think it’s distracted anything right now,” coach John Beilein said of the trade rumors. “I’ve been hearing that since the time I was hired. We want Kevin to go out there and play his best every single day for the Cleveland Cavaliers.”
Lloyd names the Celtics, Trail Blazers, and Mavericks as teams that make sense as a trade partner based on his conversations with people around the league. Portland might seem like an odd fit with Carmelo Anthony playing well at power forward, but some around the game believe Melo’s game will fade as the season goes along.
The Cavaliers have essentially made “everyone but [Darius Garland]” available. The franchise wants to find way to gain additional first-round picks and would love to flip a player on an expiring deal for one. That’s unlikely to happen even for Tristan Thompson, who is playing some of the best basketball of his career. Trading Love while taking some money back may be Cleveland’s only route to its desired asset.
NBA Trade Candidate Watch: Central Division
Over the course of the 2019/20 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.
We’re just three days away from December 15, the date when more than 120 players who signed new contracts this past offseason will become trade-eligible. Generally, NBA teams don’t suddenly complete a flurry of trades when the calendar turns to December 15, but it at least provides some hope that one of the leagues’ longest ever trade droughts could come to an end soon.
After initially identifying three trade candidates from the Central last month, we’re circling back to the division today to examine three more. Let’s dive in…
Kevin Love, PF
Cleveland Cavaliers
$28.9MM cap hit; $91.5MM in additional guaranteed salaries through 2022/23
As Jason Lloyd of The Athletic wrote this morning, Love has been the subject of trade rumors for years, but it feels a little different this time.
It seems likely that Love is one of the players who hasn’t been particularly fond of John Beilein‘s coaching style. After all, it was just two months ago that the Cavaliers’ power forward was talking about how much he wanted to remain in Cleveland. With the Cavs off to a 5-19 start, the latest reports are suggesting that Love would rather be traded to a contender.
There will be plenty of roadblocks in the way of a potential deal. Matching Love’s cap hit of nearly $29MM will be a challenge for many teams. Even clubs that have the salaries necessary to acquire Love may not agree with the Cavs about his value — Lloyd suggested today that Cleveland wants a first-round pick in return, but that may only be realistic if the club is willing to take back some bad money.
Ersan Ilyasova, PF
Milwaukee Bucks
$7MM cap hit; $7MM non-guaranteed salary for 2020/21
The Bucks have opened the season by winning 22 of their first 25 games, including 16 in a row through Wednesday. If the team continues playing at this level, you could make a strong case that the best approach at the trade deadline would be standing pat.
If Milwaukee does look to upgrade its supporting cast though, Ilyasova looks like the most logical candidate to be moved in such a deal. His $7MM cap hit makes him a good salary-matching chip for mid-level contracts, and his non-guaranteed salary for next season would appeal to teams looking to create flexibility.
The 32-year-old also isn’t such a crucial piece of the rotation that the Bucks would balk at giving him up. He’s not a particularly strong defender or play-maker, so his value comes from his ability to stretch the floor, but he has only made 33.3% of his three-point attempts, his lowest mark since 2013/14, and his 16.3 minutes per game are the fewest he has averaged since 2006/07.
It’s hard to come up with an ideal trade scenario for the Bucks, so Ilyasova is probably more likely to stay put than to change teams within the next couple months. But it won’t be a surprise if he’s dangled in a few trade discussions before February 6.
Reggie Jackson, PG
Detroit Pistons
$18.1MM cap hit; UFA in 2020
If the Pistons fall out of playoff contention in the Eastern Conference, some bigger names could become trade candidates. In that scenario, potential deals involving Andre Drummond and Blake Griffin shouldn’t be entirely ruled out.
But considering the 11-13 Magic currently hold the No. 8 spot in the East, falling out of the playoff race is unlikely unless the Pistons totally bottom out. As such, Jackson is the more logical trade candidate than the team’s two stars, since his expiring $18MM+ salary could be used to build a package for another impact player.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem as if there will be many impact players available that will fit the Pistons’ roster. But exploring a trade for a player like D’Angelo Russell using Jackson’s contract as the primary salary-matching piece might make sense if Detroit – which has all its future first-round picks available – remains in win-now mode.
Revisit the rest of our 2019/20 Trade Candidate series right here.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Cavs Rumors: Love, Trade Options, Porter
The Cavaliers may have a difficult time trading Kevin Love this season for a couple reasons, as Jason Lloyd of The Athletic explains. For one, Love has a massive contract that will pay him more than $91MM over the next three seasons, not counting his $29MM cap hit for 2019/20.
Additionally, there may be a significant divide between what the Cavaliers want for Love vs. what other teams are willing to offer. A source with knowledge of the situation tells Lloyd that Cleveland is seeking a first-round pick. However, some potential trade partners want to acquire a first-rounder themselves for absorbing the final three-and-a-half years of Love’s contract.
One league executive believes the Cavs may eventually get the first-round pick they want in a Love trade, but it depends how much salary they’ll be willing to take back, Lloyd writes. It doesn’t help the Cavs’ case that there aren’t many truly toxic multiyear contracts left on teams’ books around the NBA that they could absorb.
Here’s more out of Cleveland:
- Following up on Love, Lloyd acknowledges that the five-time All-Star has been the subject of trade rumors for years, but says this time feels “a little more real.”
- Here’s how Love responded when asked by Lloyd if he re-upped with Cleveland because the team was willing to pay him more money than he could’ve received in free agency: “Maybe more years. And honestly it was like the last one I signed. I could’ve done a one-plus-one and waited, and got $40MM more. But I think I felt comfortable here, I didn’t know what the future was going to hold, but they believed in me after my first year after I got hurt and they believed in me then. And it’s really hard to say no when the money is right there. From a strictly financial standpoint, if it’s right there in front of you, you’re like, ‘S–t.'”
- The Cavaliers had made it known that they’re ready to discuss trades, according to Lloyd, who hears from one source that the team has made “basically everyone but Darius [Garland]” available. The Cavs’ veterans on expiring contracts are the club’s most logical trade chips, but Lloyd is unconvinced that any of those players will be worth a first-round pick on the trade market.
- According to Lloyd, the Cavs have been “quietly impressed” with what they’ve seen so far from No. 30 overall pick Kevin Porter Jr. Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com took a closer look at Porter after the rookie scored a career-high 24 points vs. Houston on Wednesday, writing that the 19-year-old has been the “brightest light in a gloomy season” for the franchise.
Kevin Love Reportedly Interested In Blazers
Multiple sources have informed The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor that pricey Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love would prefer to be traded to his hometown Trail Blazers. Love, a native of Lake Oswego, Oregon, is in the first year of a four-year, $120.1MM contract.
The big man, 31, missed 60 games last season with various maladies. Injuries also hindered his availability during the 2017/18 season. Love missed 23 games that year, his last All-Star season.
O’Connor opines that the expiring contracts of center Hassan Whiteside (who is earning $27.1MM) or wing Kent Bazemore ($19.3MM) could be used in a deal with Cleveland. Cavaliers center Tristan Thompson, currently earning $18.5MM in the final year of his deal, could also be a good fit in Portland, O’Connor notes. Injured center Jusuf Nurkic is expected to return to the floor for Portland well before the playoffs commence.
The 10-15 Blazers are seeded 11th in the competitive Western Conference at present, but they are just two games back of the 11-12 Suns, the current No. 8 seed in a crowded race for the bottom of the playoff bracket.
Even with the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference fairly open (the 11-12 Magic currently occupy that position), the 5-18 Cavaliers face an uphill battle to make the playoffs. Anonymous leaks suggest player dissatisfaction with new head coach John Beilein, and their young guards, Darius Garland and Collin Sexton, have both struggled to perform thus far this season. With Love apparently wanting out, too, the Cavs may be best served cutting their losses and stockpiling whatever assets they can extract from an interested trade partner.
O’Connor notes that the Suns and Nuggets may also be candidates for Love’s services ahead of the February 6th trade deadline.
Eastern Notes: George, Pacers, Ujiri, Heat, Beal, Love
It has been nearly two-and-a-half years since Paul George was traded by the Pacers to the Thunder, but fans in Indiana still booed George – now on Clipper – on Monday whenever he touched the ball, as if this was his first game back, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. George, who said he wasn’t surprised by being booed, also hinted that the full story of his departure from Indiana still hasn’t come out.
“You know, someday I’ll do a tell-all and tell the leading events of how I left Indiana,” George said. “And I promise you, I’m not the one to boo.
“… I’m not gonna share the teaser,” George later said. “… I like being the villain. I’m here two nights out of the year. The people they should boo is here a lot longer than I am.”
The George trade was one of the first major moves made by Kevin Pritchard, who became Indiana’s head of basketball operations during the spring of 2017. While George implied on Monday that the Pacers franchise may be partially to blame for the circumstances surrounding that trade, he declined to criticize Pritchard, as Youngmisuk notes.
“I’m not going to bad-mouth KP,” George said when told that Pritchard said George’s trade request felt like a punch in the gut. “That’s just Kevin’s side of the story.”
Here’s more from around the East:
- Howard Beck of Bleacher Report recently reported that Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri turned down a lucrative extension offer, but Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca hears from sources that the offer didn’t happen. Still, Grange wouldn’t be surprised if Ujiri is interested in testing the “free agent” market at some point, and believes the Knicks could be a real threat to lure him away from Toronto.
- The Heat would have had serious interest in Bradley Beal if the Wizards had made him available in trade talks or if he had reached free agency in 2021. Instead, Beal re-upped with Washington, signing a two-year extension earlier this year. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald caught up with Beal to ask the Wizards’ star whether he considered the possibility of a move to the Heat before inking that new deal. Beal’s answer? “Yes and no.” Jackson has the full story and quotes.
- Steve Bulpett of The Boston Herald explains why the Celtics shouldn’t be viewed as a potential suitor for Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, who is reportedly on the trade block.
O’Connor’s Latest: Thunder, Blazers, Love, Iguodala, More
As we relayed earlier this morning, Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer reported that the Rockets have “serious interest” in Timberwolves wing Robert Covington. That tidbit was just one of many in a longer article jam-packed with notes and observations on the NBA’s trade market, so let’s round up some of the other highlights from O’Connor’s piece…
- As expected, Thunder veterans Chris Paul, Steven Adams, and Danilo Gallinari are all available, league sources tell O’Connor. However, as Shams Charania of The Athletic reported on Monday, Oklahoma City also seems willing to take on bad contracts and unwanted money, according to O’Connor, who hears that getting out of tax territory isn’t necessarily a priority for the club. The Thunder don’t anticipate a major tax bill this season and know they won’t be back over that line in future years, so they’re willing to live with a slightly bigger penalty this season if it means acquiring extra assets.
- Speaking of Gallinari, the Trail Blazers are expected to pursue the Thunder forward, league sources tell The Ringer. O’Connor also hears that Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love would like to play for his hometown team in Portland.
- O’Connor identifies the following teams as ones that appear most open to trading late first-round or early second-round draft picks: The Bucks, Raptors, Clippers, Celtics, Sixers, and Mavericks. Some of those clubs hold other teams’ picks and could dangle those in trade talks. For instance, Milwaukee owns Indiana’s lottery-protected first-rounder; Philadelphia has New York’s and Atlanta’s second-rounders; and Dallas controls Golden State’s second-rounder.
- League sources tell O’Connor that Davis Bertans (Wizards), Marvin Williams (Hornets), J.J. Redick (Pelicans), and Marcus Morris (Knicks) are among the veterans who are candidates to be dealt before the deadline. Redick likely won’t be moved, but multiple execs believe New Orleans could strongly consider the idea if the right offer comes along.
- O’Connor hears that there’s “no world” in which the Grizzlies buy out Andre Iguodala. Memphis will trade him — it’s just a matter of when and where, says O’Connor. A source tells The Ringer that the Grizzlies are open to any type of trade package, even if it means taking back a multiyear contract.
Central Notes: Love, Doumbouya, Drummond
The Trail Blazers, Nuggets and Suns are some of the teams that might be interested in Cavaliers forward Kevin Love but his trade value has diminished due to his health and contract, Sean Deveney of Heavy.com writes. Love is in the first year of his $120MM extension and he’s experienced back issues after missing most of last season with a toe injury, Deveney notes. He also missed significant time the previous two seasons with hand and knee injuries. Cleveland’s haul for Love would likely involve a first-round pick, salary-cap relief, and perhaps an underachieving young player, Deveney adds.
We have more from around the Central Division:
- Love isn’t sure if he’ll be dealt but he understands why there’s so much speculation regarding his status on the rebuilding Cavaliers, Tim Bontemps of ESPN relays. “I imagine, in a rebuild, it’s easy to look at it, especially when it’s down and out at this point, and say, ‘Hey, we want to completely reset the deck and go young,'” Love said. “I understand that. But despite that, whether it’s five months or five years, I’m always going to be able to come back to Cleveland no matter what, and I’ll always love the fans, and be part of this organization, one way or another.”
- Pistons first-rounder Sekou Doumbouya has taken a positive approach to his G League assignments, Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press reports. In 13 games with the Grand Rapids Drive, Doumbouya is averaging 17.1 PPG and 5.4 RPG while shooting 40.9% on 3-point attempts. The forward doesn’t turn 19 until December 23. “He’s coachable,” Grand Rapids coach Donnie Tyndall said. “He will look you in the eye when he’s talking to you. He doesn’t cop an attitude or have bad body language. He gets disappointed in himself a little bit, he’s pretty hard on himself.”
- Pistons coach Dwane Casey is baffled when center Andre Drummond‘s energy level is criticized, as he told The Free Press this weekend. Drummond, who can become an unrestricted free agent if he opts out this summer, leads the league in rebounding by a wide margin and recorded his 37th career 20-20 game against Indiana on Friday. “If he makes a mistake, they say he doesn’t have energy,” Casey said. “To get to 20 rebounds, somebody show me how to get 20 rebounds with two guys trying to box you out. That’s energy. I struggle when people say that Andre’s not playing with energy. To do what he does takes a lot of energy.”
Kevin Love Reportedly Prefers Move To Contender
Trade rumors continue to swirl around Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, with Shams Charania of The Athletic and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst becoming the latest to weigh in on Love’s situation.
According to Charania, league sources have said Love would prefer a move to a contending team. Charania also reiterated what ESPN reported on Friday, indicating that the Cavs have been open to engaging in discussions with teams about a potential trade involving Love.
Windhorst, meanwhile, stated on his podcast that he thinks Cleveland’s phone lines “were always open” on Love, adding that the five-time All-Star seems “clearly unhappy” with the Cavs (hat tip to RealGM). Love expressed frustration over the weekend with the team’s struggles, and Windhorst suggests that the big man’s relationship with first-year head coach John Beilein may have accelerated the Cavs’ timeline for a trade.
[RELATED: Report: John Beilein’s Coaching Style Is Alienating Players]
The Cavs got off to a solid start this season under Beilein, winning four of their first nine games. Since then, they’ve dropped 12 of 13, and many of those losses have been blowouts. The team was hammered by 47 points in Philadelphia on Saturday.
After recording 18.3 PPG and 13.4 RPG on 48.1% shooting in Cleveland’s first nine games, Love has averages of 13.9 PPG and 7.6 RPG on 39.6% since then, and has battled a back injury.
While Love still has star-level upside, potential trade partners will be wary of his recent injury history (he hasn’t played more than 60 games in a season since 2015/16) and of his contract, which still has three years and $91MM+ left on it after this season.
Cavaliers Notes: Love, Beilein, Altman
The frustrations in Cleveland are becoming too much for Kevin Love to hide, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Cavaliers lost by 47 points last night in Philadelphia, a day after a report that players are unhappy with first-year coach John Beilein. Fedor notes that at one point in the game Love wandered off by himself for a while during a timeout after rookie Darius Garland opted to shoot a fadeaway rather than pass the ball to him in the post.
“Just complete and utter frustration,” Love admitted after the game. “I think that’s natural. I really want to compete. I think most guys want to compete. Just really, really frustrated. I don’t know. Getting myself going is just … I don’t know what else I can do.”
Saturday marked the 12th loss in 13 games for the Cavs and the second straight in which a member of the organization commented on Love’s body language. He committed to the team last year by agreeing to a four-year extension after LeBron James left, but finds himself in an unfamiliar role as part of a rebuilding project after making four straight trips to the NBA Finals. A report surfaced Friday that Cleveland is ready to listen to trade offers involving Love.
“I’m really trying to be engaged,” he said. “I’m trying to be a good teammate. I don’t think any of these guys would say that I’m not a good teammate. It’s tough.”
- Beilein received some encouragement last night from Sixers coach Brett Brown, who understands rebuilding as well as anyone, Fedor adds. Overseeing “the Process,” Brown won a combined 47 games during his first three seasons in Philadelphia, but now has his team in title contention. He promised to text Beilein advice on how to handle the constant losing
- The Cavaliers can make Beilein’s job a lot easier by getting rid of the veterans who refuse to give him a chance, contends Jason Lloyd of The Athletic. Beilein claims he has changed his college style to adapt to the NBA, but Lloyd notes that he’s really coaching two teams at once — a young core set for the future and seven veterans who are in the final year of their contracts. Lloyd believes general manager Koby Altman already knows which players need to be traded.
- Frank Urbina of HoopsHype lists the Jazz, Nets, Suns and Celtics as four possible landing spots for Love.