The Pacers have been actively looking to deal away Danny Granger, but have had little success, and the same is true for the Wizards and their attempts to unload Trevor Ariza‘s expiring contract, writes Grantland’s Zach Lowe. The Grantland scribe also seconds a report from Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports that Washington is looking for a backup point guard. Lowe’s latest column focuses on the trade deadline, which is just nine days away, and we’ll pass along the highlights of a rumor-packed piece here:
- The Bobcats are “absolutely serious” about their pursuit of Evan Turner, Lowe writes, pointing to the connection between David Falk, who serves as Turner’s agent, and Bobcats owner Michael Jordan, a former Falk client. The Sixers are a lock to be “super active” as the deadline approaches, according to Lowe.
- Sources tell Lowe that the Warriors aren’t ready to trade Klay Thompson or Harrison Barnes, in spite of the team’s struggles.
- Executives around the league are high on Alexey Shved, but the Timberwolves probably wouldn’t be able to get a game-changer in return for him.
- The Heat are ready to waive either Roger Mason Jr. or Toney Douglas to open up a roster spot so they can acquire a player via trade or in the post-deadline buyout market.
- Lowe continues to hear that the Nuggets are making Kenneth Faried available for the right return, even as Denver consistently denies such talk.
- Hawks GM Danny Ferry isn’t enamored with the four-year, $32MM deal that the team committed to Jeff Teague when it matched his offer sheet from the Bucks this past summer.
- The Nets seem to be leaning toward not making a move at the deadline, according to Lowe.
I’d be all for trading Klay as long as the Warriors can get a needed, reliable piece that would instantly make them a better, more competitive team, not just for this season, but for the future too.
As a Warriors fan, I’ve grown impatient with Klay. I’ve enjoyed watching his development since his rookie season. But IMO he’s far too inconsistent, he seems unsure of himself a lot (hesitant, indecisive) when ball handling / passing. And even though he’s gotten tougher and drives to the rim more this season, he’s not a good finisher.
Barnes took a hit (imo) when Iggy came over. As a rookie last season, Barnes started, and we all saw that he was very capable. The expectations for him this season were high but I think coming off the bench might have been hard for him and his development.
I don’t think Klay will improve drastically from where he’s at now. Hopefully he’ll become a bit more consistent. But with Barnes, I feel there is much more upside since I don’t think he’s close to being as good as he’s capable of being. He’s not a shooter like Klay, and not as good of a defender, but imo Barnes is more of a natural scorer. And his shooting and defending will improve with more playing time.
Tough decision for the Warriors.
Klay Thompson also guards the opposition’s best player every night and plays 40 minutes every night. It would be very dumb for Golden State to trade him
Hopefully, the Heat can find a way to pick up an athletic wing player somehow,
more likely in free agency than in a trade. We really need to add some length and athleticism on the wing, preferably a decent defender to try to match up with the Thunder’s athleticism a little better. We already have DeAndre Liggins on our D-League roster, and he fits the bill as a very good defender. Maybe he gets the opportunity, or maybe its someone else. All I know is that they do need to find someone that I described