We’ve reached the point in NBA trade season in which the distance from the deadline is no longer measured in weeks, but days. We’re now 10 days out and buyers and sellers alike are starting to get their ducks in a row. For some teams, that means making the final decision on which camp they fall into. For others, it’s about figuring out how far they’re willing to go in either direction.
There’s still enough time for things to change, but the deadline picture is starting to crystallize. It’s now less a matter of who is on the table and more a matter of who is willing and able to take the steps necessary to make a deal. On this Monday, there are two big names making waves in the rumor mill.
Is there a possible home for Bradley Beal after all?
You all know the deal by now. Phoenix can’t get Jimmy Butler without including Bradley Beal for cap purposes. One of the reasons this trade hasn’t happened yet is that nobody seems interested in taking on the Beal contract. Every time a new suitor enters the chat, like the Bucks briefly did, reports have struck down possible interest. Very few teams seem to have much interest in taking on a supermax deal for a 17-point scorer who doesn’t defend and has injury issues.
A sensible fit, though, might be a team that’s already paying a supermax contract to a scoring guard that doesn’t defend and has injury issues. The Chicago Bulls have been shopping Zach LaVine for more than a year, and now that he’s playing like an All-Star again, there’s plenty of interest in him on the market. LaVine is better and younger than Beal, but the appeal for Chicago is obvious. They are not contending during the duration of those contracts, which cover identical terms, so why not get some draft picks to overpay for a player who isn’t in their long-term plans anyway?
According to Brian Windhorst on his Hoop Collective podcast, the Bulls “are absolutely involved in conversations with the Suns involving possible Jimmy Butler situations” and could serve as the facilitator that absorbs Beal. This would open the door to what would likely be a five-team trade: Phoenix would get Butler, Milwaukee would get LaVine, Miami would get a package headlined by Khris Middleton, Bobby Portis and picks, and a fifth team would presumably absorb the contract of Pat Connaughton.
Now, there’s still one obvious hold up even if the Bulls agree to take on Beal: He doesn’t have to go there if he doesn’t want to. Beal has one of the NBA’s only two no-trade clauses, and according to his agent, he has not agreed to waive it for any specific destination yet. Even if there is a team he’d be open to leaving the Suns for, the Bulls aren’t especially desirable on paper. He’d be leaving a warm-weather city that is at least trying to contend for a cold-weather city and a team whose aspirations rarely extend beyond the Play-In Tournament.
So there are still two major hurdles in any Butler-to-Phoenix scenario, and both revolve around Beal. Chicago’s possible willingness to take him does represent progress, though. With 10 days left until the deadline, there still remains at least a chance that this deal gets done.
Welcome back to the rumor mill, Myles Turner
I mean, come on, it wouldn’t be trade season without at least one Myles Turner rumor. For now, there is nothing too definitive. Both Jovan Buha and Jake Fischer have acknowledged recently that there has been a bit of noise surrounding Turner during this trade cycle, though neither indicated that the Pacers are actively shopping him. This is surprising in large part because of how well the Pacers are playing. Indiana is 9-2 in its past 11 games and has surged up to the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference. Why would one of the NBA’s hottest team consider trading its starting center?
The answer, as it is for so many roster-building decisions in this new CBA environment, is money. Turner is about to become a free agent, and based on his production and the rarity of his skill set, he is expected to seek a contract worth $30 million or more per season. The Pacers already have more than $167 million on the books for next season before factoring in options or additions. The projected luxury tax for the 2025-26 season is $187.9 million. In other words, keeping Turner means either dumping someone else or paying the tax.
The Pacers haven’t paid the tax since 2005, and that was before it became the punitive measure it is today back in 2011. Indiana is known as one of the NBA’s thriftier organizations, and with a long window ahead of this current roster, it seems unlikely that ownership would be willing to pay the tax for a team that is not perceived as a genuine championship threat. Remember, avoiding the tax not only means avoiding a payment, but it also gets non-taxpaying teams a payout from the pool of teams that actually are above the tax line. This season, for instance, the projected tax distribution to non-taxpaying teams is $17.8 million. That’s a whole lot of money to give up in a market as small as Indianapolis.
Lakers’ trade deadline will be defined by one question, and there’s a candidate who might make everyone happy
Sam Quinn
The flip side, though, is that the Pacers have basically nothing beyond Turner on their depth chart at center. Indiana is not going to start Thomas Bryant in the middle of a playoff push. They’d therefore need to find a cheaper center somewhere on the market, or perhaps get enough of an asset payout to justify taking on a more expensive center so they can cut costs elsewhere. Perhaps Portland, with the cheaper Robert Williams III or Deandre Ayton, whom Indiana signed to the offer sheet he is currently playing on, could be roped in to help them get another big man. But the notion that Indiana would trade Turner to, say, the Lakers for a first-round pick and some cap fodder is probably far-fetched. The Pacers may want to avoid paying Turner, but they’re not gutting their season to do so.
Turner has been on the block for seemingly his entire career, but he’s never been traded. The assumption should be that he won’t be until there’s substantial reporting otherwise. But the Pacers have a long history of operating relatively cheaply. We might have an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object here, folks. Something’s gotta give, whether it’s now or over the summer.
