The 3:00 p.m. ET NBA Trade Deadline is just hours away. For up-to-the-minute breaking news and rumours in the leadup to the cutoff, be sure to check out our handy live tracker.
And, to whet your appetite, here’s a summary of the biggest buzz around the league.
Kevin Garnett’s Minnesota swan song?
The Skinny: First reported by Marc Stein of ESPN, the Minnesota Timberwolves are apparently in talks with the Brooklyn Nets to bring Kevin Garnett back to the team that drafted him in 1995.
Analysis: As nice a story as this may be, there’re likely too many factors at play working against it, with the primary one being Garnett’s no-trade clause.
As Stein noted, a move back to Minnesota mid-season would be problematic for Garnett as he doesn’t want to uproot his family’s life right now and, given his ultra-competitive nature, leaving a team in the middle of a playoff hunt for one that’s sitting in the NBA’s basement doesn’t mesh with K.G.’s DNA.
On the flip side, the Nets should want to make this move because it allows them to graciously rid themselves of Garnett in exchange for a player like Thaddeus Young, who could help Brooklyn far more than the Big Ticket can at this stage.
From Minnesota’s perspective, while giving up an asset like Young would hurt their rebuild, the sentimental value of the deal can’t be overstated and Garnett’s fire and passion would translate well to a raw roster of youngsters that are still learning what the NBA is all about.
Goran (and Zoran?) Dragic leaving the desert
The Skinny: Goran Dragic has told the Phoenix Suns that he will not re-sign with the club, leaving them little choice but to trade him.
Analysis: Without question the biggest name being lobbed around the rumour mill, the Dragic trade saga picked up steam when USA Today’s Sam Amick first reported that the talented point guard would refuse to re-sign with the Suns. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports later reported that the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Miami Heat are on Dragic’s preferred list of destinations.
The reason why the news has gained so much traction is Dragic and his agent hold all the cards. The point guard is slated to become an unrestricted free agent in the off-season and unless there’s a guarantee that he’ll re-sign with whatever team he’s traded to, clubs will be reticent to do business with the Suns.
Now, the latest wrinkle in all of this drama is another dispatch from Wojnarowski reporting that the Suns are still looking to deal outside Dragic’s preferred list of teams, and include his brother, Zoran, in any package.
According to that report, the Suns are looking for a deal that would involve either a talented young player and a first-round pick, or two first-round picks—assets that teams on Dragic’s list supposedly don’t have.
Apparently, the Suns really painted themselves into a corner when they signed Isaiah Thomas and now must face the consequences of toying with a star player.
Reggie Jackson wants out of OKC
The Skinny: Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski is also reporting that the agent of Oklahoma City Thunder guard Reggie Jackson has requested the team trade his client.
Analysis: Similar to Dragic, Jackson wants to run the show and be the starting point guard of an NBA team—something that simply isn’t happening with Russell Westbrook locked under contract for another two seasons. With the acquisition of Dion Waiters earlier this season further diminishing Jackson’s role, it’s understandable that he’d push for a trade.
The issue with trying to move Jackson is the Thunder like him and getting appropriate value back will prove difficult in this trade market. His status as a restricted free agent heading into the off-season is another problem.
USA Today’s Sam Amick reported that Jackson would be willing to sign his qualifying offer in order to become an unrestricted free agent in 2016 and really cash out. That could scare potential trade partners, as no team acquiring Jackson would want to give up anything of real value for a point guard planning to bolt in a season-and-a-half.
Clippers shopping Jamal Crawford
The Skinny: The Los Angeles Clippers are probing for interest in Jamal Crawford, looking for a first-round pick that they would then try to leverage into a deal with the Denver Nuggets for Wilson Chandler or Arron Afflalo, according to, you guessed it, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Analysis: This is a pretty complicated way to try to acquire much-needed perimeter defence for his bench, but given the dearth of valuable trade assets, you can’t blame Doc Rivers for getting a little creative. That being said, this is the wrong way to go about trying to fix the Clippers’ second-unit woes.
Crawford is the Clippers’ best bench player and one of the only guys on the roster that can create his own shot. While it’s true he isn’t the stoutest defender, he gives an anemic second unit a much-needed boost offensively, and can also be relied upon in crunch time as a secondary ball-handler.
This is a precarious time for the Clippers, who will be without Blake Griffin for an indefinite period as he recovers from a staph infection. They can’t afford to strikeout on a deal that may not even come to fruition.
Nuggets getting the first-rounder they’ve coveted for Afflalo
The Skinny: Hoping for a first-round pick for guard Arron Afflalo, the Denver Nuggets will reportedly get just that, with the most likely suitor being the Portland Trail Blazers, accoring to ESPN’s Marc Stein.
Analysis: If this report turns out to be true, the trade is a clear win for the Nuggets, who also made good on a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier this season—acquiring two first-rounders for Timofey Mozgov.
Afflalo’s a good player, but his trade value probably isn’t equivalent to a first-round pick. However, given where the Blazers are in the standings, they should be aggressively looking to make a serious run in the playoffs. Adding Afflalo will help shore up their weak wing depth as Nicolas Batum has struggled all season with a nagging wrist injury.