NBA Trade Rumors for 2016-17 NBA Season: Cousins to Pacers, George to Celtics, Lopez to Be Traded
NBA regular season games have already begun but trade rumors continue to press forward. Some rumors involve players that have been the subject of trade speculation since the off-season. Here are the latest NBA trade rumors.
1. DeMarcus Cousins to Indiana Pacers
iTech Post reports that DeMarcus Cousins will be traded to the Indiana Pacers. This trade rumor involves three teams; the Kings, Pacers and Boston Celtics.
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In this trade, Boston will get Paul George, Ben McLemore and a 1st round draft pick from the Indiana Pacers. DeMarcus Cousins, Jae Crowder and a 2017 1st round draft pick by Boston will move to Indiana. Marcus Smart, Jaylen Brown, Amir Johnson and a 2018 1st round draft pick will go to the Sacramento Kings.
The trade scenario is valid under salary cap and trade constraints set by the league, as checked by the ESPN trade machine. Whether all teams involved actually push through with the trade is a different question.
Boston Celtics will benefit from getting Paul George, a young superstar who can shoot the lights out in any given night. Not only that, the Celtics will get Ben McLemore, another young talent with lots of potential. To get these two incredible back court players, though, the Celtics would have to give up a lot of key players in their current roster. That involves two starters, two 1st round draft picks, and two players who play with regular minutes.
DeMarcus Cousins is a highly skilled offensive player; perhaps the best among the league's current centers, but going to Indiana may not be his best option. The Pacers already have Myles Turner and Al Jefferson. Getting Cousins at the expense of losing Paul George, who is essentially Indiana's franchise player, may not be a good fit.
2. Brook Lopez to be Traded
Brooklyn Nets may be trading their star center, Brook Lopez, just to add new players to the roster and hopefully win more games. According to Brian Lewis of New York Post, "with the nets hunting for assets and able to bring back a windfall for Lopez, they could move [Lopez] at the trade deadline to a desperate contender that feels it is just a star big man away. A team like the Celtics, who have more draft picks that they can use."
Aside from the Celtics, other teams that might be interested in Brook Lopez are the Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks and the Charlotte Hornets.
Lopez averaged 20.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 blocks per game last season.
Lewis also predicts that Jeremy Lin will put up big numbers this season, in terms of points and assists, now that he is the team's starting point guard.
