The NBA trade deadline has come and gone and while a number of trades went down, a couple of the most bandied about players never ended up getting moved. Sometimes it’s hard to get things done midseason, which is why we can expect a number of those rumors to come to fruition once we hit the offseason.
Brook Lopez, Brooklyn Nets
This is the player who was on the verge of being traded before the deadline multiple times. He was supposed to have been part of a blockbuster deal involving the Oklahoma City Thunder, but the teams backed away from that deal at the last minute. Lopez is in a unique situation because he could opt out and become a free agent but he has a player option for $16.7 million in 2015-16, which is a ton of money. He won’t see that kind of coin as a free agent, so chances are he opts in and the Nets are forced to trade him.
The Nets are in the midst of organizational turmoil and that points to some trade activity. The challenge is that nobody wants Deron Williams and the $43 million he has left over the next two seasons and nobody wants to pay Joe Johnson $25 million next year either. That’s why Lopez is the most likely to get moved. He’s still just 26-years-old and is a potential double-double player if he can stay healthy. Someone will view him as an asset – especially on a one-year contract where they can test him out.
Lance Stephenson, Charlotte Hornets
It is true that Stephenson has not yet been traded despite so many whisperings surrounding him. There are questions about his behavior, so it is felt around the league that if a team wants to take him on, it will want wiser to do so during the offseason when they can get acquainted with him, learn his habits and properly integrating him. It is so clear by this point that the Hornets are not satisfied with what they’ve gotten from Stephenson and why should they be? Charlotte made the playoffs a season ago and would have been in position to challenge the Miami Heat in the first round had Al Jefferson not suffered an injury.
Charlotte developed a surprisingly solid team a year ago but this season they’ve regressed – not just to the point where the playoffs are anything but a guarantee (the team is tied for eighth place in late February) but to the point where a winning record is highly unlikely. Charlotte finished 43-39 last season and was supposed to take the next step forward with the addition of Stephenson, a supposed All-Star and nightly triple-double threat. Instead, he’s been a bust and his energy has dragged the team down.
It’s possible that head coach Steve Clifford is the scapegoat for the team’s failures this season but what’s more likely is that Stephenson is a goner – especially since the Hornets have been trying to trade him this season.
David Lee, Golden State Warriors
The Warriors aren’t interested in having Lee on a long-term basis. Howard Beck of Bleacher Report has noted that Golden State has $77 million committed next season and will have to look to ways where they can save some money. They’re in salary-cap trouble even without considering the financials for Draymond Green, who is a player who gives Golden State a lot more value at both ends of the floor and needs to be re-signed. Green might even command max money.
Lee is a great offensive player but a terrible low-post defender and, unless he’s willing to take a dramatic pay cut, he’s not going to be in Golden State beyond next season. The good news is that next season is his final one, which makes him an expiring contract and an asset. While there were few takers for his services this time around, he’ll garner more interested when he becomes a salary cap asset.
