Central Notes: Tomlin, Cunningham, Bucks Trades, Jackson
Cavaliers forward Nae’Qwan Tomlin is likely to be promoted from his two-way deal to a standard contract but not right away, Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com writes in his latest mailbag (subsciber-only story). Teammates and coaches are lobbying for it and he has the support of the front office but the organization is in no hurry to do so. The cap-strapped franchise will likely keep its roster options open until the trade deadline passes, since Tomlin has only been active for 41 games, meaning he is still nine away from the 50-game threshold for two-way players. The Cavs only have seven games prior to the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
Here’s more from the Central Division:
- The Pistons defeated New Orleans without All-Star starter Cade Cunningham in the lineup on Wednesday. Cunningham sat out due to an illness and a left hip contusion. He’s questionable to play in Detroit’s home game against Houston on Friday, Hunter Patterson of The Athletic tweets.
- The Bucks have limited trade assets but they’re comfortably below the luxury tax line and about $18MM under the first apron. So what kind of moves might they make, short of trading their superstar? The Athletic’s Eric Nehm proposes a number of hypothetical deals, a few of which include Kyle Kuzma, Gary Harris and Amir Coffey as well as a blockbuster that would involve Bobby Portis and several other players to acquire the Kings’ Zach LaVine.
- Quenton Jackson‘s ankle was “jammed,” according to coach Rick Carlisle, during the Pacers’ loss to the Celtics on Wednesday. Jackson wasn’t on crutches in the locker room afterward, according to the Indianapolis Star’s Dustin Dopirak (Twitter link), and seemed to be moving around OK though he was in some pain. He’s questionable to play against Oklahoma City on Friday.
Bucks Rumors: Giannis, Morant, Rollins, Monk, Ellis, Portis, More
Thursday’s loss to San Antonio marked the halfway point of the Bucks‘ season, and the team’s 17-24 record is its worst first-half mark since 2015/16, writes Eric Nehm of The Athletic.
Although Nehm describes Milwaukee as looking “lost,” the front office has held firm on its stance that star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo isn’t going anywhere this season and that it wants to add an impact player alongside the two-time MVP, writes Jamal Collier of ESPN.
“We always manage to pull something off,” a team source told Collier.
Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant is one potential target the Bucks have been linked to as of late. According to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype, Memphis has sought guard Ryan Rollins and Milwaukee’s lone tradable first-round pick (in either 2031 or 2032) in discussions with Milwaukee about Morant.
However, the Bucks have been “wary” about including that first-round pick in any trade talks to date, per Collier, who hears from rival executives that that first-rounder would likely only be on the table for a “star.” Morant, who has made two All-Star teams, certainly fit that bill at one point but may no longer be viewed that way, as he has battled injuries and seen his production decline in recent years.
As Collier writes, the Wizards’ deal for Trae Young might be instructive when considering the sort of trade that makes the most sense for the Bucks. Washington gave up no draft picks and a significant expiring contract as part of the package for Young, with the Hawks looking to get off the hook for his $49MM player option in 2026/27.
Milwaukee is in a good position to make a similar move for a player on a non-expiring deal, says Collier, noting that Zach LaVine, Malik Monk, and Jerami Grant are a few of the trade candidates with multiyear contracts who have been linked to the team. Collier also cites Heat forward Andrew Wiggins and Hornets Miles Bridges as a couple more examples.
The Bucks have had exploratory discussions with the Kings about a deal that would send Bobby Portis and a minimum-salary player to Sacramento in exchange for Monk and Keon Ellis, league sources tell Scotto. A trade for a higher-salary player such as Morant or LaVine would require Milwaukee to sacrifice more rotation pieces for matching purposes, but the team has considered that possibility, gauging the market for forward Kyle Kuzma ($22.4MM cap hit) as well as Portis ($13.4MM), Scotto writes.
As Collier observes, the Bucks would be more equipped to make a significant splash during the 2026 offeason, when they’ll have up to three first-round picks available to trade (2026, 2031, and 2033). But the club – which has a +7.7 net rating with Antetokounmpo on the floor in 2025/26 – hasn’t given up on this season, even if some rival executives aren’t convinced Milwaukee should continue with its win-now approach.
“At some point, you’re just digging deeper and deeper,” an Eastern Conference exec told ESPN. “There might not be light at the end of the tunnel. It might just be a hole.”
Bucks Reportedly Interested In Ja Morant
The Bucks are among the teams with interest in Grizzlies point guard Ja Morant, multiple league sources tell Jim Owczarski of The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (subscription required).
Morant, a two-time All-Star who has been plagued by injury and off-court woes in recent years, will miss his fifth straight game on Sunday vs. Brooklyn due to a right calf contusion, per the NBA’s official injury report.
This is the first report we’ve seen definitively linking Milwaukee to Morant, who is on the trading block.
In order to match salaries with Morant, who is earning approximately $39.5MM this season and is under contract through 2027/28, an outgoing Bucks package would likely start with Kyle Kuzma ($22.4MM). There are multiple ways to make the money work from there with additional players included.
While Morant makes some sense as a buy-low candidate for the Bucks, who are trying to get back into contention in the Eastern Conference around two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, his on-court fit seems shaky. For starters, Morant has never been a great shooter, and Milwaukee’s two best players this season outside of Antetokounmpo have been point guards Ryan Rollins and Kevin Porter Jr.
The Bucks also continue to be intrigued by Kings shooting guard Zach LaVine, Owczarski reports. Milwaukee has been connected to multiple players on Sacramento’s roster, though the two teams reportedly weren’t engaged in active trade conversations as of last week.
Trade Rumors: Morant, Ball, Bucks, Kings, Kuminga
The Hawks‘ return for a four-time All-Star like Trae Young may look awfully modest, but a scout who spoke to Sam Amick of The Athletic suggests it may be equally difficult for other teams with defensively limited point guards to extract real value for them. That group includes the Grizzlies with Ja Morant and the Hornets with LaMelo Ball.
“Ja, Trae and LaMelo don’t have that much value because the game has changed around them,” that scout said.
According to Tim Bontemps and Brian Windhorst of ESPN, rival executives have conveyed a similar sentiment, pointing to Young’s maximum-salary contract and the league-wide depth at the point guard spot as reasons why they think Atlanta made out reasonably well in the deal. Conversely, some of those execs questioned the Wizards‘ decision to trade for Young.
“I know from a value proposition why you look at it,” an Eastern Conference scout said. “But if I’m the Wizards, just keep being bad, and stuff will figure itself out. I’m not sure why they felt the need to do this.”
“Offense is so easy now,” a Western Conference executive added. “One of the worst teams in the league can still easily put up 115 points in a game. … It’s hard for these small point guards to have real value with how the game is played now.”
We have more trade notes and rumors from around the NBA:
- While the Bucks have been connected to multiple Kings players, including Zach LaVine and Malik Monk, there were no active discussions between the two teams as of earlier this week, league sources tell Amick. Amick also confirms that the Bucks are among many teams believed to have interest in Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. and that they’ve conveyed interest in Anthony Davis, though they don’t appear to have a realistic path to a deal for the Mavericks big man.
- Checking in on the Jonathan Kuminga situation, Amick writes that the Kings are still widely viewed as the frontrunner to acquire the Warriors forward, but are no longer willing to offer the protected 2030 first-round pick that was on the table during the offseason, echoing a similar report from ESPN. Additionally, since Golden State has registered no real interest in Sacramento’s veterans, a third team may be necessary to make a deal that gets Kuminga to the Kings, Amick adds.
- ESPN’s Kevin Pelton and Zach Kram suggest six hypothetical trades they think make sense for all involved parties, with cap expert Bobby Marks analyzing each proposal. Their ideas range from bigger moves like the Bucks getting Porter or the Warriors landing Trey Murphy III to more minor deals like the Raptors acquiring Brook Lopez.
Kings Rumors: Kuminga, Ranadive, Christie, Draft
The Kings are among the teams with interest in Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga as the trade deadline nears, according to ESPN’s Anthony Slater. When Kuminga was a restricted free agent over the summer, Sacramento general manager Scott Perry visited him in Miami, and there’s still mutual interest in a partnership, sources tell Slater.
Slater hears from league sources that Golden State’s front office is exploring its options heading into the deadline and has sent out signals in recent days that it’s willing to hold onto Kuminga if an acceptable trade offer doesn’t happen. But Slater states that Kuminga will be available and that Perry contacted Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. last week.
Perry was willing to part with a protected 2030 first-round pick during the offseason to acquire Kuminga, but Slater reports that he has “expressed reservations” about making that same offer now. Slater also says the Warriors won’t take back any long-term deals they perceive as having negative value and have no interest in Malik Monk, who’s owed $20.2MM next season and holds a $21.6MM player option for 2027/28.
Slater notes that a multi-team deal could make it easier for everyone to get what they want, pointing out that Keon Ellis‘ $2.3MM expiring contract is attracting interest around the league. In a separate story, Slater states that Ellis, who will become extension-eligible on February 9, still has many admirers among rival front offices and scouts.
There’s more from Sacramento:
- Kings owner Vivek Ranadive remains extremely involved in personnel decisions, Slater adds. He pushed former general manager Monte McNair and former assistant GM Wes Wilcox to increase their offer to Chicago for DeMar DeRozan in the 2024 offseason so Ranadive could walk DeRozan to their courtside seats during halftime of a Summer League game. That resulted in giving up a 2032 unprotected first-round pick to San Antonio that could be extremely valuable unless the Kings turn around their fortunes over the next six years. Ranadive gave DeRozan a three-year, $74MM contract that limits his value on the trade market. McNair also had apprehensions about last season’s decision to part with De’Aaron Fox in a three-team deal to acquire Zach LaVine, a player that Ranadive badly wanted.
- Lack of player-to-player accountability is seen as an issue in Sacramento, according to Slater. Veteran guard Dennis Schröder, who’s in his first season with the team, said it happens “here and there,” but not consistently. Domantas Sabonis expressed a similar sentiment, according to Slater, and pushed management to sign Russell Westbrook, his former teammate in Oklahoma City.
- Doug Christie only has one more guaranteed season left on his three-year contract, but team sources tell Slater that his job isn’t in jeopardy. Perry remains supportive of his head coach, saying, “He’s got an organization that’s behind him and believes that he will be there to help push us through and turn the corner.”
- Although the Kings have a lot of veterans to offer on the trade market, their high salaries may make them difficult to move, Slater adds. He suggests this summer’s draft pick is probably their most valuable asset, with Perry looking for positional size and defensive versatility and Christie wanting players who fit an up-tempo, physical style.
Trade Rumors: Young, LaVine, Brooks, Deadline, AD, More
Sam Amick and Josh Robbins of The Athletic have confirmed Shams Charania’s report that the Hawks are working with Trae Young and his representatives to find the 27-year-old point guard a new team.
As Amick reported last week, Atlanta has been increasingly willing to discuss Young trades for weeks or even months after the Hawks showed no interest in pursuing an extension, but the market for the four-time All-Star seems to be limited. According to Amick and Robbins, Young is searching for a new deal “commensurate with a star player.”
To illustrate the point about teams being wary of acquiring the diminutive point guard, Amick and Robbins cite a team source who says the Kings — long viewed as a potential landing spot for last season’s assists leader — have “no interest” in trading for Young. Zach LaVine, whose contract is very similar to Young’s, is “known” to have interest in joining the Hawks, the authors add.
Regarding Marc Stein’s report about the Hawks discussing a trade that would potentially send Young to Washington and CJ McCollum to Atlanta, Amick and Robbins note that Young doesn’t fit the archetype favored by the Wizards‘ top front office executives, and speculate that Washington might want either draft compensation or a young player to take on his contract, which includes a $49MM player option for next season.
Young missed his fifth straight game Monday due to a right quad contusion.
Here are a few more trade-related rumors and notes from around the NBA:
- Don’t expect Suns small forward Dillon Brooks to be on the move in the next month. Gerald Bourguet of Suns After Dark reported (via Twitter) on Monday that Phoenix isn’t interested in moving the veteran wing due to both his on- and off-court contributions. Suns owner Mat Ishbia essentially confirmed as much just a few minutes later. On FanDuel TV’s Run It Back show (Twitter video link), former NBA big man DeMarcus Cousins said he if were running the Lakers, he would trade Austin Reaves for Brooks “in a heartbeat.” Ishbia’s response? “Don’t bother calling… Suns aren’t interested. Dillon’s not going anywhere,” he wrote (Twitter link).
- Amick, Josh Robbins and John Hollinger of The Athletic discuss the biggest storylines and questions ahead of the February 5 trade deadline, noting that Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s situation with the Bucks is the one that holds the most intrigue around the league. All three think Antetokounmpo is more likely than not to stay put during the season, though that would depend on whether the two-time MVP requests a trade. Other topics include whether Anthony Davis will be traded by the Mavericks and role players who could appeal to contending teams. Hollinger lists Wizards forward Justin Champagnie as an example of a player on a team-friendly contract who could be a valuable in-season addition.
- Speaking of Davis, he and Kyrie Irving wanted to play together for years before it finally came to fruition last February, writes Christian Clark of The Athletic. However, the Mavericks duo only played two-and-a-half quarters together prior to Davis suffering a left adductor strain. Less than a month later, Irving tore his ACL, and there’s no timeline for his return. Whether they’ll be able to team up again before the season ends is an open question with Dallas expected to listen to offers for Davis, Clark adds.
Kings Notes: Murray, Ellis, LaVine, Raynaud, Westbrook
The Kings‘ season has been defined by injuries and losses, and both continued Sunday night against Milwaukee, Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee writes in a subscriber-only story. Keegan Murray and Keon Ellis were both forced out of the contest as Sacramento ran its losing streak to five games while dropping 15 of its last 18.
Murray, who recently returned from a calf strain, hurt his left ankle in the third quarter. His season debut was delayed until November 20 while recovering from surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb, and he has only been available for 19 of the team’s 36 games. The 25-year-old forward is considered one of the Kings’ few untouchable players heading into the trade deadline after receiving a five-year, $140MM rookie-scale extension in October.
Coach Doug Christie wasn’t able to provide much information on the injury after the game. “I don’t know yet, so it’s not even for me to speculate,” he told reporters. “Obviously, we’ll get everything and you guys will know as soon as we do.”
Sacramento also lost Ellis, who suffered a left thumb injury and only played five minutes. The 26-year-old guard has been the subject of trade speculation, with the team reportedly seeking a protected first-round pick in return.
“It’s hard, man,” Christie said of the constant injuries. “You feel for your kids, first and foremost. It’s just difficult.”
There’s more from Sacramento:
- There was some positive injury news on Sunday as Zach LaVine returned to the court after missing nine games with a sprained left ankle, Anderson adds. He came off the bench for the first time since being traded to the Kings last season and finished with 20 points, three rebounds and four assists in 36 minutes. LaVine said he didn’t have a target date to return, but was waiting for “whatever day my ankle felt best.” (Twitter video link from James Ham of The Kings Beat)
- Maxime Raynaud was in the starting lineup after getting a clean bill of health following an injury scare. The rookie center had to be helped off the court after hurting his left leg on Friday, but an MRI revealed no structural damage. “I just got really scared that one moment, felt like your knee twist a little bit like that,” Raynaud said. “Just glad the MRI came out clean.” (Twitter video link from Sean Cunningham of KCRA News)
- Russell Westbrook had a 21-point night and reached another milestone by passing Oscar Robertson to move into 15th place on the career scoring list. He’s now the leading scorer among all point guards in NBA history.
Injury Notes: LaVine, D. Jones, T. Young, J. Smith, C. White
After missing nine games with a left ankle sprain, Kings wing Zach LaVine will return to action on Sunday against Milwaukee, tweets James Ham of TheKingsBeat.com. Rookie center Maxime Raynaud will also be active after having an injury scare in Friday’s loss to Phoenix.
LaVine is reportedly one of several players the Bucks are monitoring ahead of the trade deadline, so it’s an interesting coincidence that he’s returning today.
Here are a few more injury-relates updates from around the NBA:
- Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. suffered a right knee injury in Saturday’s loss to Boston and will undergo an MRI on Sunday, reports Law Murray of The Athletic (All Twitter links here). According to Murray, Jones limped to the locker room after being fouled by Payton Pritchard in the fourth quarter. It’s a disappointing development for the high-flying Jones, who just returned to action on December 28 after missing several weeks with a sprained MCL in the same knee.
- Hawks point guard Trae Young missed his fourth straight game on Saturday at Toronto, per Brad Rowland of Locked On Hawks (Twitter link). The four-time All-Star has been battling a right quad contusion. Kristaps Porzingis (return to competition reconditioning) was also out for the second night of a back-to-back, which was expected, Rowland notes (via Twitter).
- Bulls big man Jalen Smith has entered the NBA’s concussion protocol after taking a hard hit to the head in the third quarter of Saturday’s loss to Charlotte, head coach Billy Donovan said after the game (Twitter link via K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Sports Network). Smith has been ruled out of Monday’s contest at Boston after being diagnosed with a concussion (link to injury report). On a brighter note, guard Coby White has a chance to return Monday — he’s questionable with what the team is calling right calf injury management.
Injury Notes: Warriors, Young, LaVine, Pistons
After previously announcing that Draymond Green would miss Friday’s matchup with the defending champion Thunder, the Warriors have also ruled out Stephen Curry (left ankle sprain) and Jimmy Butler (illness), per Anthony Slater and Shams Charania of ESPN.
It’s the first half of a back-to-back set, and the Warriors are hopeful that all three players will be back on Saturday vs. Utah, according to Slater and Charania. It’s also worth noting that Friday’s game will be nationally televised, which means Curry and Butler couldn’t be rested without legitimate ailments, since they qualify as “stars” under the NBA’s player participation policy. Green, who doesn’t meet the star criteria, is listed on the injury report as out due to “rest.”
With three starters sidelined, forward Jonathan Kuminga is expected to play on Friday for the first time in over two weeks, head coach Steve Kerr said today during a radio appearance on 95.7 The Game (Twitter link).
Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:
- Hawks guard Trae Young (right quad contusion) has been ruled out for a third consecutive game and won’t be available on Friday in New York, tweets Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks. Young was initially listed as questionable, which suggests he’s considered day-to-day and should probably return soon, barring a setback.
- Kings guard Zach LaVine will miss a ninth straight game on Friday vs. Phoenix due to a left ankle sprain. Asked on Thursday if he had any updates on LaVine’s status, head coach Doug Christie had little to offer, telling reporters there’s “nothing new” (Twitter video link via James Ham of The Kings Beat).
- The Pistons were without Tobias Harris (left hip sprain) and Caris LeVert (left knee inflammation) for Thursday’s loss to Miami (Twitter links via Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press and Hunter Patterson of The Athletic). Head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said that LeVert’s injury, which has kept him on the shelf for the past two games, is one they’ve been managing all season and that it “flared up on him” this week. As for Harris, Bickerstaff suggested he would have more info on the forward’s prognosis within the next few days.
Scott Perry Hopes To Turn Kings Into ‘Sustainable Winner’
The results haven’t been encouraging in Scott Perry‘s first season as general manager of the Kings, but he remains focused on building “sustainable” long-term success, he said in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape.
Perry, who was hired to run the team in April, discusses numerous topics in the lengthy exchange, including his approach to the upcoming trade deadline. Sacramento owns the second-worst record in the Western Conference at 8-25 and has several veteran players who could interest other teams, such as DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine, Malik Monk, Russell Westbrook and Dennis Schröder. Perry plans to listen to offers over the next five weeks, but he hasn’t determined that certain players will definitely be moved.
“I’m always going to work the phones,” he said. “I’m always going try to figure out how we can improve the team, both short and long term, if possible. But I want to be prudent and opportunistic in doing that. I’m not somebody who does things out of panic. So, it’s got to make sense for us. So, we’ll see.
“But obviously we know we’re far from a finished product, so we’ve got to be open to getting better. And this is one of the vehicles that you have at your disposal in trying to get better. It’s seeing that there’s a trade that makes sense and fits for not only you, but it’s got to fit for the other team or teams that you’re involved with.”
Perry recognized when he took the job that it wouldn’t be easy to transform a franchise that has only made one playoff appearance since 2007. That came in 2023, and the Kings have been trending downward ever since. They’re currently on pace for the worst record in franchise history, but Perry made it clear that he’s not looking for a “quick fix” to salvage this season at the expense of the future.
“I was hired to build a sustainable winner,” he said. “So, I’m sure there’s an anomaly somewhere, but I don’t know of many quote-unquote quick fixes that turn into being sustainable. And my vision, which is shared by top to bottom ownership and everybody in the building, is to build a sustainable winner. I think that takes a little more time than quick fixes. You got to make appropriate decisions in that at least give you the best chance to lay a foundation to grow into something that’s sustainable. And so that’s what we’re at.
“… What is a quick fix? It’s probably for that season or maybe one other season. But hopefully, my goal and vision is to get to the point that once you become a playoff team you can stay there for a while. And that’s when you get your chance to sustain it.”
Perry admits he’s still in the “evaluation stage” with the franchise as he tries to decide which players to keep. Amid the losing, one positive has been the performance of the team’s rookies. Second-round pick Maxime Raynaud has been a pleasant surprise, especially since moving into the starting lineup after center Domantas Sabonis was sidelined with a meniscus injury. First-round selection Nique Clifford is getting regular rotation minutes, and Dylan Cardwell has been a valuable big man off the bench on a two-way contract.
Perry calls all three rookies “very hard workers” with “very good basketball IQs” and indicated that they’re the type of players he wants to build around.
He also discussed the decision to give Keegan Murray a five-year, $140MM rookie-scale extension in October. Murray hasn’t posted outstanding numbers during his first three-plus NBA seasons, but Perry views him as another building block for the future.
“Another tremendously hard worker, high character guy,” Perry said. “In this league, you can’t have too many 6-8, 6-9 versatile players. The guy has shot the three-point ball at a high clip since coming to the league, even though his numbers are down this year. He missed the first month of the season and is taking a little while to get his rhythm back, too. We’re matching him up with everybody on the other end, but that’s a tribute to his defensive versatility. So, here’s a guy that we put on point guards and we put on centers and all positions in between and he doesn’t flinch. He takes on those assignments. That’s invaluable.
“When you talk about build a team, he’s young, he’s 25 years old. So now we’re coming into the window of hopefully what’s going to be the prime of his career. I see him as being a very important part of establishing that sustainable winning. You need high character, versatile two-way players – as many as you can get. He was here and he liked it here and it’s been good to work with him.”