As the Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline approaches, the league has gone from a slow jog to a full sprint. Here are the latest rumors from around the Association.
Chicago, Phoenix talked Bradley Beal trade
Chicago has made a half-pivot toward rebuilding, trading DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso last summer, but they still have Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic on the roster (and winning enough games for them that the Bulls are in the play-in as of today).
Is adding Bradley Beal going to help with that pivot? The Bulls and Suns have talked about Beal landing in Chicago, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective Podcast, but added no deal is close. Over the weekend, the possibility of Phoenix exploring a Beal for Zach LaVine trade was mentioned by Jake Fischer at The Stein Line.
First, does Beal want to go to Chicago? Remember, he has a no-trade clause and can veto any deal.
A trade of Beal and picks — Phoenix has first-rounders to trade now — to Chicago for LaVine straight-up works under the salary cap. However, this would likely be part of a larger trade or series of trades — Phoenix would then want to flip LaVine for Jimmy Butler, not necessarily hold on to him (although LaVine’s scoring could take some of the load off Kevin Durant and Devin Booker in Phoenix). Milwaukee has been speculated as another team in the mix who could take on LaVine, shipping Khris Middleton and Bobby Portis out the door to make it happen (plus, the Bucks would need another team to take on Pat Connaughton and his contract). That’s a lot of moving parts, which makes this a complex trade unlikely to happen, but it’s out there.
For Chicago to take on Beal and his additional salary (both Beal and LaVine have player options for 2026-27, but Beal’s is for about $8 million more), they will want multiple first-round picks. There are reports they want all three first-rounders the Suns just traded for to consider it. Even if they could do it, should the Bulls? Does it make sense for Chicago during a rebuild? This trade feels unlikely, but it’s an intriguing possibility to watch.
Zach LaVine would prefer to remain Bull
Zach LaVine’s name has been in trade rumors for more than a year, and with him having a bounce-back offensive season — 24 points a game shooting 45.1% from 3 — there is genuine interest around the league. He has been tied to Denver, Milwaukee and other teams in potential trades.
However, if he had his choice, LaVine would rather remain in Chicago, reports Jake Fischer at The Stein Line.
What LaVine wants may be irrelevant as the Bulls have already committed to a rebuild, having traded DeMar DeRozan and Alex Caruso last summer (although if the season ended today, the Bulls would make the play-in in the East). LaVine, Nikola Vucevic, and Lonzo Ball are all available via trade, with Ball possibly being the best deal of the three.
If nothing comes of this for LaVine, he’ll be perfectly happy to stay put.
Denver unlikely to trade for LaVine
Before LaVine was caught up in rumors with the Suns, the Denver Nuggets reportedly had their eye on him to juice their offense.
That’s likely not happening, reports Bennett Durando at the Denver Post. He notes that since the LaVine-to-Nuggets rumors, Jamal Murray has stepped up his game and looked like the No. 2 the Nuggets need. Combine that with LaVine getting more interest from other teams, and it’s unlikely he will become a Nugget at the trade deadline.
Might Nuggets dump Nnaji to re-sign Bruce Brown?
The idea of the Nuggets re-uniting with Bruce Brown — a key player in their 2023 title run — has been mentioned in this space before, but the Denver Post brought it up again.
There are a lot of moving parts to make this happen. The plan starts with Toronto not finding a trade for Brown before the Feb. 6 trade deadline. The Raptors are trying, but there have been no strong rumors of a deal. If he cannot be traded, the next step would be for Brown to take a little discount on his $23 million contract to facilitate a buyout from Toronto, making him a free agent.
Then, Denver would need to dump Zeke Nnaji’s salary ($8.4 million), which means attaching a draft pick to it to get Detroit or someone to take it on. That would get the Nuggets below the first luxury tax apron, allowing them to sign a buyout player who made more than the mid-level exception (teams over the apron cannot). That’s a lot of things that have to come together, but it’s something worth watching.
Walker Kessler “close to unavailable”
The Lakers have reached out to the Jazz multiple times because Los Angeles sees Walker Kessler as exactly the fit as a traditional center they need next to Anthony Davis — and he’s a young player on a rookie contract — but they have gotten nowhere close to a deal, a league source told NBC Sports recently. Now Marc Stein reports that Kessler “is believed to [be] as close to unavailable as it gets.”
The Lakers can offer one of their two available first-round picks to Utah plus offer to remove the 1-4 protection on the 2027 Lakers first-rounder already owed Utah, and for most teams that would be enough (and might get Collin Sexton thrown into the deal, with the right matching salary). But this is Danny Ainge the Lakers are dealing with, and the Jazz believe Kessler can be part of their future, so they are not giving him up cheaply. Don’t expect a Kessler trade to go anywhere.
Bulls willing to trade anyone, except Matas Buzelis
It’s no secret the Bulls are open for business, with a focus on trading LaVine (read above) and/or Nikola Vucevic.
However, every player on the roster — except for rookie Matas Buzelis — is available in a trade, reports Joe Cowley at the Chicago Sun-Times. The real steal on this roster might be Lonzo Ball, who is back after three knee surgeries, and while his minutes have to be monitored he has been a quality point guard for the Bulls this season (and he is a free agent this summer, trade for him and you plan to re-sign him).
The Warriors are the front-runners to land center Vucevic, but Golden State will not give up a first-round pick in any offer, reports Marc Stein.
Kyle Kuzma reportedly “less patient” with Wizards
A year ago, Wizards GM Michael Winger approached Kyle Kuzma and asked if he wanted to be traded to Dallas. Kuzma shot that idea down.
He might regret that decision now as he reportedly is growing impatient with the Wizards. Kuzma was more aggressive, scoring 30 in a loss to the Suns Saturday, then postgame, we got this from Josh Robins of The Athletic.
But all indications are that Kuzma is less patient now with the Wizards’ direction. Asked last weekend how he would respond if Winger approaches him before Feb. 6 about a potential trade, Kuzma answered, “We’ll see how it goes. I don’t know. I didn’t think last year was the right time (for a trade) after signing the deal (a four-year contract in 2023). That was kind of more of a last-year thing. I haven’t had conversations (with Wizards management). I haven’t even talked about the deadline, haven’t talked about being traded. So, this is really the first time I’m really talking about it.”
Washington’s problem is that there is much less interest in Kuzma. His game has taken a step back this season, partly due to injuries that have kept him sidelined for 17 games. More importantly, he is scoring 14.6 points a game, down from more than 21 a game the two previous seasons. He is shooting 28% from 3 (career 33.5%), and his 48.7 true shooting percentage is well below the league average (career 54.2).
Washington’s return will be much smaller than a year ago, but they might pull the trigger and get it done anyway if a decent offer comes along.
Jusuf Nurkic doesn’t expect to be traded
The headline out of Suns center Jusuf Nurkic opening up to Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic about his situation was Nurkic saying he has no relationship with coach Mike Budenholzer.
Nurkic also was asked if he expected to be with the Suns beyond the Feb. 6 trade deadline.
“Yeah, for sure. Because we are the Phoenix Suns and new (collective bargaining agreement) and all the rules, it’s not easy to get traded when you’re over the second tax apron. Even that, I can’t control.”
While the Suns’ trade of their 2031 first-round pick (unprotected) to Utah for three late first-round picks was primarily aimed at completing a Jimmy Butler trade, one of those picks could be packaged with Nurkic as a sweetener to move the veteran center. There are a lot of teams looking for a center, and Nurkic plus a first should be enough to find a deal somewhere. He is making $18.1 million this season and has a fully guaranteed $19.4 million for next season, which gives teams facing tax apron restrictions (which is most of them) pause.
Could Indiana trade Myles Turner?
It’s a strange thing to discuss for a team that has won 9-of-12 and moved up to fifth in the East, but could the Pacers trade center Myles Turner at the deadline?
It would be about the money, Turner is a free agent this summer and is reportedly seeking around $30 million a season in a new contract — and the Pacers may not want to pay it. If the Pacers feel like they are going to lose Turner this summer, then do they have to consider a trade now to make sure they get something back for Allen? Here is what insider Jake Fischer said on a recent episode of the Dunc’d On Basketball NBA Podcast.
“Right now, every rival executive I’ve spoken to has said that they don’t anticipate Indiana wanting to pay the salary that Myles Turner is, in theory, going to be looking for… he’s going to want 30 [million a season]. People want $30 million right now, it’s going to be twice the mid-level… there’s so much skepticism that Indiana’s going to want to do it.”
For comparison, $30 million a season is around what Isaiah Hartenstein and Jarrett Allen got with their new contracts last summer (Allen doesn’t make that until next season when his two-year extension kicks in).
Turner is averaging 15.4 points and 7 rebounds a game for the Pacers this season, he can space the floor as a 39.6% shooter from 3, and he’s a solid rim protector in the paint. He’s a more gifted offensive player than Hartenstein or Allen because of his shooting, but the other two are stronger on the boards and as defenders in the paint.
If Indiana receives the right offer, it must consider it. Right now, this offense works with Turner in the middle around Tyrese Haliburton. If Turner leaves, how will Indiana replace him? There’s a lot at play, but it’s something to watch.