Welcome to the hoophead equivalent of the holiday season: NBA trade deadline week.
There certainly has been enough speculation to fuel a freight train, but the next few days is where the action will happen. The biggest names being floated around include Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard, Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin, Atlanta Hawks forward Al Horford and guards Jeff Teague and Kyle Korver, Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love and New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony.
That’s quite a prestigious list of All-Stars being floated in potential deals, and you can be sure that for every trade rumor you hear about there are three to five you don’t.
We’ve already had a few trades Tuesday to kick off the action which certainly has the dominoes in motion.
Be sure to stay tuned here on NESN.com for all your NBA trade deadline rumors, deals, analysis and more.
Players Boston Celtics should avoid at NBA trade deadline >>
8:45 p.m.: Could we have another deal in the making? Just because the Clippers aren’t dealing Blake Griffin doesn’t mean they’re standing pat at the deadline. They seem to be the front runners in the Channing Frye sweepstakes.
The Clippers aren’t the only team interested in Frye. Several teams, including the Cleveland Cavaliers, are interested in acquiring the veteran. A deal likely won’t happen Tuesday night, though.
It doesn’t appear Lance Stephenson will wear a Magic uniform, though.
It seems Frye to L.A. is contingent upon Stephenson’s involvement, so L.A.’s hesitance makes sense based on this report.
7:10 p.m.: Doc Rivers made it clear Tuesday that Blake Griffin isn’t going anywhere.
Griffin also apologized for the incidents that ended with a broken shooting hand and a suspension.
6:30 p.m.: One general manager told the Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett that “nothing (the Celtics) have is untouchable.”
One general manager who’s had recent conversations with the Celts was talking about the club’s willingness to get involved in trade talks. Then he added that Ainge is one of the more decisive people in the profession.
“Nothing they have is untouchable,” the GM said. “Even the Brooklyn pick is there if you’ve got the right guy. There’s no question they want to be in on everything to see if they can find something that works for them, and they really don’t take anything off the table.
“But Danny’s never going to give anything away. He seems to have put a value on guys — his own, too — and he really doesn’t waver much from that at all. He can be a bit of a pain about that, too.”
Bulpett further writes that those comments likely mean the asking price for Horford and Love will be too high for Ainge’s tastes.
5:00 p.m. ET: As mentioned, Tuesday saw the first domino fall during deadline week.
The Detroit Pistons acquired Tobias Harris from the Orlando Magic in return for Brandon Jennings and Ersan Ilyasova. It’s a weird move for the Magic, who just signed Harris to a four-year, $64 million contract last summer. In return, they get two veterans who at best are role players on good teams in Jennings and Ilyasova. The former’s contract expires following this season, while Ilyasova still has an extra year at $8.4 million left on his current contract, per Spotrac.
It sounds as if the Magic are giving up not only on the season after a promising start, but on Harris, who is averaging the fewest points (13.7) since his rookie season. In return for moving the 23-year-old, they get more cap flexibility and more available minutes for youngsters Aaron Gordon and Mario Hezonja.
— It wasn’t the only trade of the day. The Charlotte Hornets, Miami Heat and Memphis Grizzlies completed a three-team, four-player deal, according to The Vertical’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
In addition to a few second-round picks changing hands, the Hornets receive Courtney Lee from Memphis, the Grizzlies receive P.J. Hairston from Charlotte and center Chris Andersen from Miami, and the Heat receive point guard Brian Roberts.
It also has significant luxury tax implications for Miami.
— The Dwight Howard sweepstakes appear to be heating up.
The Hornets are just the latest team rumored to be interested in the Rockets big man.
Stein added on ESPN.com that “one source close to the talks expressed pessimism Tuesday that the sides will be able to find common ground on a deal.”
Thumbnail photo via Kim Klement/USA TODAY Sports Images
