Key Trade Deadline Deals To Watch | The Hoop Collective

Key Trade Deadline Deals To Watch | The Hoop Collective

Hello welcome to H Collective podcast we talk about the NBA which we’re doing on Tuesday afternoon and joining me today as we his Insight is valuable all year round but is extremely valuable uh over this next three to four weeks our front office Insider Bobby Mark’s joining us

From Naples what’s up Bobby he Brian how are you man and the emails I start getting from you are like Platinum um and it’s funny like sometimes I’ll be uh talking to a front office guy and they’ll uh they’ll they’ll make they’ll say something in passing like well I saw

That Bobby said this and Bobby said that I it’s uh you’re not working in the league anymore per se but you’re you’re you could always have an unofficial advisory role how’s that sound that definitely is the case um so I thought we would go over a couple of

Teams today and take a look at what their options are and what that’s on the table for them you’d know better nobody better in the world really for you other than you to take a look at this so we talked in the Pod the other day about

Philly I think Philly is one of the most um uh important teams to watch as the deadline because obviously um they’re going to be um you know they’re they’re Contender and we expect them to be amongst all the contenders they probably are the most trade ready team with the

Available um expiring contracts that they have and the first round picks they have they’re ready to go um you have and will write a lot about talk a lot about Philly in the coming days but I think one of the interesting things to me is Philly has sort of in my view three

Choices they can hold their potential salary cap space until the summer um which by which they would trade for players who are on expiring contracts so that they um can still improve their roster now but then also be a salary cap uh player in the summer how much do you think

They’re projected for right now Bobby like 55 and that takes in into account embiid uh Maxi’s free agent hle Paul Reed Jaden Springer basically four guys on I mean could go up another maybe seven but in that 55 60 range right there right so they would be in the

Market where they could sign a max player and then another significant free agent and then sign Tyrese Maxi they wouldn’t lose Maxi um or they can use their space now um this so-called pre- agency where they trade their expiring contracts for guys on on um on longer

Term deals or the third option which is sort of to split the path which is where they maybe use part of their space save part of their space or trade for players who they could keep or could jettison depending on the structure of their contract or the type of player that they

Are and so I’m sure that this is something that Daryl M and his staff have talked a lot about um giving you an example of a player they could do like for example buan bogdanovich he’s a classic player where Philly would be interested because they can go all

Directions They his contract next year is only partially guaranteed for how much Bobby like right around two million okay so they could take him keep him for 20 million on their books and use them as a very useful player they could cut him which I doubt they would actually do

But they could cut him and say goodbye open that space back up um and they could also trade for him now and help and and him be immediate help now now I don’t know whether they can swing that type of trade but those are the paths that I see for Philly Bobby I

Don’t know how you see it for him no I think you hit it right on the head I think you know the the the perfect path is is as you said kind of splitting it down the middle here where you can go out and get one or two players at the

Deadline that can help you win now and then also have the flexibility if you want to go free agent shopping or retain some of your own players um if they’re not part of the trades so for example if you want to bring back DeAnthony Melton and um resign him you have the opt

Optionality to do that we’ll see what happens with Tobias Harris um I think the the perfect I mean you go back and look at how Denver and Denver was in a little bit of a different situation because they weren’t a cap space team but they went out and got Aaron Gordon

In 2021 and then they got kcp in right before the offseason of 22 it cost them one first round pick total for both players and that’s coming into that’s a 2025 first that um that Denver uh that Orlando has um that’s you want to you

Know if you have to use one um then you have all those you know you have the rest of your picks available I think the interesting thing here Brian is they’ve got three first round picks to trade now come the night of the draft that increases to five because they’ll be

Able to move their 2024 first and then they can also move a 2031 because of the seven-year rule so it almost like not doubles but it gets you another two first round picks here and the cap space game as you know um you know there’s a lot of caution

Flags there man rolling out with it sounds great we we’ve got 65 million or 50 we we got it and then all of a sudden you like you know who’s there right who you know certainly you can make trades and and bring back players um I know you got you and Tim

And the Tims talked about Detroit the other day it’s like you have have to have an idea of like going into the offseason who your guys like who your who your you know your $40 million guy who’s your $20 million guy here and I you you look at and we’ll see what

Happens with seaka in the next few weeks here but who’s going to be the free agents out there right like who are the Marquee guys if it’s not if OG stays in New York and what happens with Pascal and you know we’re not talking about LeBron and and ka’s back is Paul George

If things kind of Hit the skids a little bit I don’t know um but at the end of the day like for me it’s like I want to I want I want to improve the roster at the deadline and then I want to still have the flexibility now what’s what’s

Improving the roster and I’ll give you kind of a little bit of a sneak peek to the Sixers like what what is it and I know there’s a lot of baggage that comes with him because of what happened in Charlotte what’s the cost of Miles Bridges what’s the cost of Miles bridges

In Charlotte for if you want him for a four-month rental his bird rights do not transfer in trade because he signed a one-year deal so it’s not like you’re getting him and you’re like oh we can pay him whatever but you could if you wanted to use some of that cap space

Here but he’d also have to approve the trade and he’d have to approve it also which if he was going to a place that had cap space he would be interested in doing that I’m sure yeah you’re not going to proove it if you’re going to um the clippers for example where they

Basically can only sign them to like $9 million here but I think that’s the the the the thinking if you’re in that Sixers front office is that you’ve got to kind of to make some gradual tweaks here but then also as you said had that flexibility in the

Offseason yeah and you know the other thing about them is I you know Daryl has talked and maybe he regrets saying this because it’s um it’s uh attributed to him a lot behead of moves I can’t remember what the percentage chance that he would say was but he was like if you have

A 5% chance of winning the title you are obligated to go for it and um I agree with that yeah you know in a vacuum you know um they would qualify for that like they have a chance uh you know and so you know if they you know who knows

What’s actually going to be on their plate but ultimately if they if he feels like they’ve got a shot to go this year he’s he’s kind of gotta sacrifice the future and take the players now I think that’s again that’s based on his own words from the past and he’s made 81

Trades since he’s been an executive second most only Sam pry wow and and a lot of and when it comes to core players and inseason trades I think Daryl’s got to be way ahead of Sam because definitely yeah I mean you can go back to the Harden

Simmons you can go back to even in his Houston days the most complicated I think that was like the clink capella trade with you know I mean there’s been there’s been you know multiple different um you know different instances as as far as like he’s he’s never um I don’t

Think he’ll ever be content right you know except besides embiid and and Maxi like you know those two core guys here I don’t think he’s ever he’ll ever be content until he’s got that finished you know finished product Jackson dug up the quote quote

If you if you’ve got even a 5 per chance to win the title and that group includes a very small number of teams every year you got to be focused all on winning the title and I would say they’re in the 5 percent y I’d say they are the handful

Of teams that have at least 5% we could debate on that all right among the other team that you were particularly interested in you brought up the Orlando Magic to me I think I thing interesting about the Orlando Magic is that they are one of the few teams that has a totally clean

Sheet on their pick situation in fact they are plus picks in other words you mentioned a minute ago how they have the Nuggets 25 pick they have all their picks I think you’ve said that they have plus five second round picks they’re like um they they have uh they got a ton um

12 so they have they have they have eight first round picks at their disposal only five of which are tradable right yeah um only I say only the Phoenix Suns heard five tradeable first round picks and passed out um but they in theory could trade five first round

Picks between now and the trade in the in the draft and have 12 second round picks of which they could trade them all uh um they are a team that’s on the edge they have they had a they had a favorable schedule uh early in the

Season that said they chewed it up and as their schedule has stiffened and they’ve dealt with a couple of injury things they’ve gone from second place in these they’ve gone all the way back to eighth um they’re they’ve they’ve lost six through their last 10 they actually have an interesting game with Cleveland

Um later this week Cleveland is one of the hottest teams in the league they’ve won five in a row although all five against against losing teams um two of them against Washington one of them against uh the Spurs um but having said that the Cleveland is as we do this

Podcast in fourth place and Cleveland is actually I think a possible first round opponent for Orlando this year in one way or another um but you br you put Orlando Orlando hasn’t done a Buy trade in quite some time and so I wonder there’s a reason why you’re bringing

Them up to me I wonder what you think of that yeah I mean I I just look at them they’re kind of in in one of the they’re almost like Oklahoma City where they’ve got like this two to threee financial window before things start to get

Expensive here and when I what I mean what you have you have fron Vagner and jayen Suggs extension eligible this upcoming off season Paulo banero is the following off season um you you know there’s been a re tooling rebuilding phase that started in 21 with the Gordon

Trade here um and as you look at it like although they’re in eight right now you know at worst they’ll get two playing games because you look at teams nine and 10 who’s there right there’s a big difference between the top eight and kind of everyone

Else let me just let me just say it as we sit here on Tuesday afternoon um Chicago is four games back of Orlando for ninth and uh Brooklyn is five and a half back for 10th so yes sorry not to interrupt you but no no um and then you

Have when you look at what they have they got a bunch of expiring contracts right Marquel Foltz who’s been injured who was a starter at one time and now uh was injured and is still start Gary Harris is on a $1 13 million expiring contract you know the guy that we you

Hear a lot about is Wendell Carter Jr uh and I know he’s been in and out of the lineup with injuries here because his contracts terrific the one thing Orlando does well is that they structure their contracts and a lot a lot of the times they either have a team option on the

End or they descend so it makes it appealing and Carter by the time you get to next year it’s going to be below the the non- taxman level which is at 13 million that’s a great contract if he’s on on the court here um one of the

Bottom I think they’re 28th or 29th and three-point shooting yeah um the game they had oh it was last week the game that Caleb Houston shot S4 seven for 14 from three and I think they won I’m not sure who it was but you’re like oh this is

The recipe right make three you know if you can get a guy out there it can make five or six threes and then like the next game he goes two for nine you’re like oh you know like we’re back to the same thing so if there’s a deal out

There now who who are the guys right is it is it is is Buddy is what’s the cost for Buddy heeld and would Indiana help out a team they’re competing for with one of these playoff spots if they’re getting a first round pick um from from

Your notes by the way they’re 12 and five when they shoot better than 35% from three yeah 35% is not a special night no 45% is a special night um so so that’s that’s for me that’s what I’m looking at you know it’s so when we talked about W The Carter um

They you know googa P Pat um had played really well but is is GNA be a free agent so if you’re going to move off Carter to upgrade shooting you better have a comfort level that you’re going to be able you’re you’re resigning him in in the off season here but I just

Look at Orlando where they don’t have to kind of go all in um you know they could still see like hey what’s this roster look like in a in a you know in a playoff series will re-evaluate in the offseason but they’ve got the resources with those expiring they’ve got that

Carter Jr as you said they’ve got all their own and that um and they still got a little bit of cap space too um and they’ve got that 25 Denver pick yeah they they haven’t been a factor in so long I think the last time they made the playoffs um Steve Clifford

Was their coach and they finished eth and they were just they just haven’t been a factor in so long that you know you don’t even really know how welman there’s no track record yeah like I just don’t I just don’t know what they’re going to do um we’re sitting here

Looking at their hand and trying to forecast it but um and even now I know they’re still a na but I mean they have some teeth I mean they they can do some things and and especially if they get a little bit of help um uh the other Eastern Conference team

That you brought up to me as a team that you thought was interesting was Charlotte yeah now in a bit of a fascinating situation they have brand new owners um Gabe Plotkin and Rick schn bought the team um before the season started Michael Jordan retained a percentage but basically those guys have

The team right now they have made no changes um their their team president fret Whitfield um retired or or left the job he disclosed that he had been fighting cancer that’s not a basketball operations move they have made no changes to their basketball operations as far as I’m aware no significant

Changes to their leadership to their operations they’ve made no significant roster moves I mean they signed lamelo ball that was kind of I mean I could have done that um they elected to bring miles Bridges back on the qualifying offer um but they have essentially made no transactions whatsoever Bobby and um

They’re they’re a bad team they’re they’re not in the the the Wizards uh Pistons class but they’re only barely out of that zone um they are really not going anywhere and they have a bunch of guys on their roster who won significant contracts starting with Gordon Hayward

Who’s at the last year of a $31 million deal um this is a team that I have heard some of their players mentioned in trade in talking with Executives but um is a still a bit of a mystery on what they’re going to do you know when I when I write the

Trade guides it’s usually players or or Executives um I never have owners as far as what to watch and for Charlotte I have both their owners as far as what to watch just because as you just laid out you know the evaluation um process you know Mitch Cup who’s their

You know head of basketball basketball operations how much Authority does he have H you know to swing a big trade and now what like for example like just a hypothetical here let’s say you could trade uh Gordon Hayward and another player for Zack LaVine and you don’t

Have to give up anything right like you don’t have to give up draft picks anything right L they could do that this afternoon I think they could do that yeah are you comfortable taking back that $138 million owed if Mitch isn’t your guy and then you’re gonna have to

Go and you’re and you have another uh executive in Waiting or you want to hire is that person gonna want to come and inherit that you know you now you got a Max back court you got a Max back court and in in LEL ball and and Zack LaVine

That’s that’s a big thing and look Mitch cup is about to turn 70 years old they have brand new owners and are in need of a major retrofit I’ll stay away from the word rebuild but um you’re asking a a realistic question so but for now Mitch is the

General manager he’s involved in contract talks and stuff like that or not contract but trade talks and stuff like that so it is a question about what’s going to happen um if by the way if Gordon Hayward stays there beyond the deadline do you think he’s a buyout

Candidate he he could be but you you know with these bird rights yeah then you you know buyouts you know buyouts become tricky because then you lose bird rights as you know then you’re basically cast in the Wind come the offseason right like you’re just right thing is yeah then the

Rules you know then you know the apron rules as far as you know he’s a 315 guy so you basically eliminate a lot of these you know eight or nine teams there and um his yeah so Bobby Bobby just moved past that but I was G clarify in the new

Rules if you’re in the aprons the first or second apron you can’t sign a player who before he got bought out made more than the average player salary yep so most of the play Griff I guess we can we call Blake Griffin Lamarcus aldd rule when the

League went on fire that year when those those two guys signed in Brooklyn how much did did Blake leave on the table oh a lot a lot that he’s probably never recoup it I mean it was I think it was one of the bigger biases we’ve seen a long time I I will

Say um I’ve told the story in the Pod before but it’s a long time ago um when Mike bbby he was with the Hawks and um the first first year LeBron was in Miami um and I just say I’ve said this before I learned a lesson from this uh he took

A buy it I believe of five million he left five million on the table to get out of his deal with the Hawks and he signed with Miami for the minimum and he signed and he I think it was Saturday morning there was very few media there

Unusual for the Heat and he came up to the podium after shoot around her practice and there’s only a couple of us there and I asked him I go how did you justify by leaving five million he was he was near the end of his career he might have he might have

Finished that year might have played one more year um and he basically said don’t talk to me about my money I was like you know what you’re right I won’t however I should point out to the fans that I you know that you gave up five million but

Um in in the new in the new era a player has to you know has to consider that like uh you know part of the reason you give up money is to go play for a championship but if you’re you know Philly right now now is um into the tax

But perhaps they could make moves to get out of the tax the Lakers by the way could make moves to get out of the tax Um but that’s a that’s a factor the other thing that’s a factor is that all teams must now spend to the salary floor and so Charlotte I don’t know what’s GNA happen next year maybe they have to give Gordon Hayward a contract just to you know

Carry over to meet the salary FL that’s Bruce Brown was the big beneficiary of that this year the Pacers were pretty far below salary floor they gave him 20 million nobody was off he had a great year last year won the title nobody was offering Bruce Brown 20 million he was

Like yes I will take the 20 million um you know it’s also that’s also a reason why he wouldn’t get bought out but I think the guys who are interesting here you mentioned miles Bridges before Bobby um and Terry roier guy who’s got a you know he’s a pretty productive player he

Has two years left on his contract I believe the last year is a team option it’s got a a really small um it’s it um it’s guaranteed for almost like 90% no there’s some B there’s some Clauses in there if they hit the if they reach like

The second round of the playoffs it becomes fully guaranteed and stuff so it’s he you know Brian he’s he’s one of these guys and and when you talk to teams um about this new CBA he’s like the perfect him and a group of other players like these $20 million

Guys like the ne so if you’re not willing to go get an A-list another like Z you know a $40 million guy if you already got two Max guys how do you build out the rest these 20 million the Malcolm brogens of the world Jared Allen’s a good name like these guys in

That range um de J Murray is another one who’s at$ 1819 million like they’re in that that they’re in a really good fit because it’s like that third guy but then you can maybe get a fourth guy at 19 right you get two of them two guys

That equal maybe one um and so roier I think he’s got you know unless you come in there’s something comes in and just totally makes sense for for Charlotte team that does not control their first round pick like their pick goes I mean it’s protected I don’t think it will

Carry but their pick goes to San Antonio which was actually part of the Murray trade like when Atlanta traded a 25 27 unprotected a 26 swap unprotected the Hornets pick was part of that that’s protected for the next few years here so if you’re if you’re Charlotte hey if

Someone comes in and say hey we’ll give you two first rounds for Terry rier and some may that’s what you think about but I think for from a value standpoint um he’ll have more Val he’ll have value next year probably too or in the offseason if that’s what you want to do

Yes I’ve gone on Jags before about the importance of and the new rules of the third salary Y and if the third you know you can afford two Maxes but if your third player is a max player he gots to be a max player he I mean I don’t mean like

What he’s getting paid I mean he’s got to actually produce like that because the rest of your team isn’t going to be there let me give you roer’s numbers he’s averaging 24 points a game shooting 46% overall from the field which is the highest of his career shooting 37% on

Threes on eight a game that is you know he has been a couple of points better at times in his career but that is quality um you know known to Chuck it a little bit but he’s also averaging seven assists he’s playing a lot at point

Guard because lamelo has been out uh so much and and as you said I think it’s 22 this year 20 4 20 or 23 24 25 for the next three years um that’s you know it’s not it’s not the greatest value in the league but

It’s it’s not bad value which is why you see teams keeping an eye on him um and why Charlotte might be interested there the question is you know what Charlotte would want in return uh because they don’t control their pick they would probably want a pick is my guess

Um but uh um they are that’s definitely a a team that’s sort of low-key to watch I would think as you’ve said um okay another team that you brought up to me um is the New Orleans Pelicans now the Pelicans have had a fascinating season there have been times where they

Have looked absolutely horrendous um including the inseason tournament there are times when some of their their their spirit and their play and their defense has been awful um Zion has kind of been all over the place been great been average been bad um but they’ve been winning now Dallas did just

Get them they just are finishing up this long road trip they have won seven out of their last 10 they’ve had some impressive wins in there um one of the reasons why they’re playing better I don’t think this is a huge Insight here by me is that their team has been

Healthy like they’ve had their three best players healthy for like the last three four weeks which is Zion Brandon Ingram and T.J McCollum and lo and behold when your three best players actually can play they’ve got some things going for them um but Bobby there’s something interesting about the Pelicans and the

Luxury tax maybe you can tell us about well they’ve never paid it so that’s for one thing listen they’re four um they’re projected to pay a 4.4 million penalty in the luxury tax which isn’t that big of a deal right they’re $2.9 million over um the tax distribution is right

Around a little bit north of $14 million so if you duck under that’s an $18 million savings that ownership will will uh will get as far as the tax and then the distribution that you’re going to get in so who you know this is a deep

Roster right like this is a deep roster you can go you know 10-11 deep you know Kyo Lewis Jr’s on the last year of his contract um he’s on an expiring if from a pure business uh perspective if you’re just looking to get under I’m sure there’s teams out

There that would you know take him on if you got to put cash in the deal if you got to attach a second or something in there um that’s um you know that’s the the economic you know non-basketball impact there because I think there is a priority when you’re that close to being

Um you know under the tax to go out and make a deal like that yeah so um that’s the thing you’re talking about so so how much does Lewis make he’s at uh what is he at like 59 I uh hold on let me pull up this thing

Here this is one of those this is one of those potential trades that would happen at um you know 257 uh on trade deadline day he’s at 57 okay so they probably would owe him about two in change y an actual money left on his salary the the Pelicans

Teams are allowed to put as much as $7 million in to trades and they’re allowed to receive as much as $7 million um which prevents Tams from just selling they got the full they got the full Kitty of both so right so Bobby just said that if they were to get if they

Were to get out of the tax Not only would they save the tax money four million but they would get the check from all the other teams that pay the tax which is about right now about 14 y um so it’s 18 million let’s say they had

To you know sell you know send Kyra Lewis they send the the money to to pay the rest of his salary and a pick and next thing you know they’ve done a deal that’s saved him that’s you know got 15 million to the good now that’s not

Exciting to talk about but I think the only two teams that have never paid the tax in the history of the tax which dates back over 20 years now are the Hornets and the Pelicans the Hornets haven’t been around for all that time yeah um but they also have new ownership

So I don’t know if they’ll stay on that list but I think the Pelicans will be on the list by the end of the season now the interesting thing is you mentioned their depth all right they have yonas funus who has a very large expiring contract um he’s also a useful player

Particularly as an offensive rebounder one of the best offensive rebounders in the league I don’t think they’re looking to trade him just to be clear however whenever you get into a situation that involves New Orleans there’s two things that come up one that they have alen shun’s contract to the amount of picks

And young players that they have so they have all of their first round picks seven of them going forward plus the Lakers first round pick unprotected which they can either use in 24 or 25 my guess is they’re not going to use it this year Bobby yeah you have

I think June June 1 or Mar May right at right after the lottery they have the decision makeing especially for next year’s draft which could be intriguing you always would like to have that wild card there just in case right right then then they have their bucks stock yeah

Which is interesting so they have a bucks first round pick in 2025 that’s protected top four this is for Drew holiday who’s since been traded yeah this is that’s top four protected okay 20 well no it’s it’s so how it works is so it’s 25 um they have their they have

The Bucks pick if it’s in one to four if it’s five to 30 New York has 5 to 30 okay uh they basically kind of split it I think it was originally part of the CJ trade um that that went to Portland and then Portland sent it to Detroit and

Detroit it basically it’s been banned around here but if if so if somehow things really go Haywire Milwaukee and it’s the number two pick in the draft New Orleans will have that pick what they also have which I can’t believe would be available is the Bucks unprotected

First in 27 now I know Giannis has signed well we’ll see about 2027 I wouldn’t think that that pick would be available right now but my point is they have all their picks plus two others potentially interesting picks because I don’t know what’s going to happen with LeBron in 20125 I feel like

He’ll I feel like LeBron’s gonna play next year but I don’t know if it’s gonna be for Lakers probably but he’s got an opt out there’s reasons to have discussions about this so they have a lot there you know they have um you know

They have uh you know a lot to train I think of their young players Dyson Daniels is a lottery pick from last year who’s an interesting player he got to play a little bit earlier this year when they were wrecked with injuries to Alvarado and um and CJ

Showed some interest you know some some stuff like um they have uh Larry Nance who comes off the bench for them but is a good defensive player that teams would like like it doesn’t take much to construct a trade here and Bobby what do you think what do you think is realistic

For the Pelicans other than we feel like they’re going to get under that tax yeah it’s funny I when I was when I was typing the New Orleans the end of the New Orleans section they were playing at the time and I was talk and I was writing about valent chunis and he’s

Like and I hear in the background and that’s 26 for valent chunis and I had a season high and I’m thinking oh my God it’s just fitting right when you’re when you’re you’re writing about somebody right I think I think if the New Orleans the you know and as you said there’s you

Know there’s that moving him is like it’s not a priority right I think the goal would be if you can get a center that’s under contract for the next few years um that you know we talked about Wendell Carter Jr in Orlando would that make sense because Carter’s on such a

Good such a good contract like for me and and it’s not going to happen like but if things had really gone off the skids in Cleveland like I would have just said to if I was Griff I would call his former understudy Kobe Alman I’d said pick what you want from our roster

Outside you know Le certain players for for Jared Allen like that’s like the that would be the and Jared’s been as you know it’s been tremendous in I think he should get serious All-Star consideration we’ll see how it all how it all plays out but yeah but

That’s the idea is like a guy that’s got like two or three left you know three two or three years left on his contracts is making in that 15 to 20 range so you know but if if if you don’t make a deal you you go into the off season and if

You if Val Tunis is your guy if you want to you know the ability to resign them you could do it but for from a trade standpoint I think would’ be getting to try to Target a player that got a couple years left on his

Contract yeah and I will say this um so Brandon Ingram he has one year left after this season um I spoke and I think it’s all public I think it’s all been said now but I I spoke to Brandon about it last summer when he was with Team USA and

Basically he told me he didn’t not want to resign he just wanted to leave the option open of making all NBA so that he could get the supermax um he’s actually having a pretty good season but he’s not having an all NBA season and so um in the summer they’re

Gonna you know they don’t have to do something with him but if they don’t if he doesn’t extend um that might get interesting so I don’t know how they plot that um that piece that they go forward um but you know if they do resign him

That’s going to hit the books at a pretty big number even without the super max this is what I’ve nicknamed the stress Max Bobby we’re in stress stress Max Zone with Brandon Ingram um because stress on their side stress on his side um but uh so that’s something

Interesting to to keep an eye on um because we’re talking a little bit about the tax real quick I I want to talk real quick about the Lakers situation sure um what is the Lakers tax position they are uh let’s pull them up right now they’re like right under uh

And you got to worry about the apron too right because they did the um the the um Gabe Vincent Gabe Vincent and the tooran prince so triggered the first apron which we call the hard cap so from Attack standpoint they’re 1.26 below and then from the apron they’re

4.94 below H I’m sorry for the tax they’re over 1.26 and then the apron they’re below right below that there so they are repeat what we call a repeater tax team this would be the fourth year in a row or four out of five years but

That small amount it’s not a make or break but they’re still in the tax there and there’s ways the Lakers can make a trade to improve with just having to shed 1.3 they could they could make a trade improve their roster and get out of the

Tax sure if you’re sending out a um a $14 million player for an $18 million player um you get under you get under there yeah so um or a$1 15.7 million player for a $19 million player well and what Bobby is referring to here is a possible dejonte Murray

Trade um it doesn’t take highlevel cap mechanics to figure out how the Lakers could trade for dejonte Murray get him get that contract that you talked about a guy on a on a favorable deal based on the the machinations and get out of the luxury tax which would save them

Uh yeah they’ll be like they’ll be like New Orleans they’ll get that $4 million plus you know like in the repeater over being over a million is like you know it being some with the neighborhood of 15 16 million so um you know 15 million to the

Lakers um they can find uses for that uh I remember years and years ago I always tell these stories Bobby I know people probably get bored of them but um years and years ago when Dr bus was still alive I remember the Lakers made like a deadline trade

Where they like I think it was Chris MIM they traded Chris MIM to save $3 million and um I remember saying to somebody why would they do that why would the Lakers need another $3 million and they’re like that’s three more million for Jerry bus

To take to the tables in Vegas and was a joke but like that’s true you know like the if the Lakers make an extra $6 million each one of the six bus kids gets an extra million I don’t know what to tell you that’s just the way it is

I’m not saying they make decisions based on that but when you look at the possibility of trading your roster trading improving your roster and saving $15 million it might make it a little easier for them to include a draft pick you know a first rounder yeah I mean

It’s not like if you were 10 million over luxury tax and like you know it when you’re in that like that that one to four range you know there there are you know they they’re deals out there to get you under and there’s nothing wrong with you know saving $14 million I think

What the interesting thing is and I and I’ve heard I heard you guys talk about this on the last podcast is the de jante Murray trade bonus right yes please bring this up to me because you said something to me about this that I highest it’s the highest in the NBA um

13 is the highest ever I have to go look at a not I you know what I think it could be um I have to go look at my notes and and people have to realize like um and you guys have said it guys with Max contracts have trade bonuses in

There but there’s rules in place where you’re your the bonus can’t exceed the max allowed so if there was never a rule in place then yeah these guys would have their trade bonus would be like $30 million and stuff because it’s the it’s the percentage of what is owed on on the

Salary here so as of today the Murray trade bonus is$ 13.4 million it’s the most in the NBA second is Anthony Davis at $12.9 million two clutch players so clutch likes to put trade bonuses in his contract here’s the interesting thing when you go look at the the the jeante

Murray trade bonus when Murray did his extension with San Antonio rookie extension the trade bonus was not in there it was a straight deal however when he did his rookie extension they opened up the San Antonio contract and amended that and added a trade bonus in

That contract and they added a a put a trade bonus in the rookie and this new extension so he’s getting it he’s getting the bonus on what’s left this year and he’s also getting the bonus on what is owed to him over the next four seasons here so it’s like he got opened

Up the contract how is that allowed they amended it they amended it to add the uh to add a bonus it’s you know you’re allowed to you can do that there so they add an exhibit four with the trade bonus it’s at 13.4 million if he’s traded

Let’s say we get off this this zo uh this podcast and he’s traded uh you can negotiate right you can negotiate it down and you can what I mean that’s a lot of money though going La taxes right um yeah it’s it’s um it’s spread out over um four years you don’t

Include the last year which is a player option as far as adding so $3.4 million would be added to each year Atlanta pays the bonus but for cap purposes that number gets added to that you know that 18 and change number that that Murray has does Atlanta have to give them the

Full $1 13 million now or they just pay it over the next three years two two installments so so there but here so here’s your big your big picture and I know like you’re not supposed to look back on trades that happened okay so we’re going to pay this guy 13.4 million

And then you know what next year going to send that unprotected 25 to San Antonio and an unprotected swap in 26 and unprotected in 27 here so if you’re Atlanta you’re trying to recoup as much you’re you’re not getting you’re not getting what you gave up right like that

Has happen so you’re trying to recoup as much as as much as you can before you’re kind of moving off him right but so all the other thing is is that de jante Murray’s cap number changes going forward so you were talking about how attractive he is at 19 or 20 million on

Your books um but then even though the Lakers don’t have to pay that extra 3 million a year he hits their books with the extra well I don’t mean to sound like the Lakers have him team X trades for him I know the Nets are a team well

Yeah I mean he goes from a he goes from a 24 point or $25 million player next year to like a like a um you know a a $28 million do guy then he’s then he’s going to be 30 then 31 like it that nice right so whatever team would interest in

Trading for him that he becomes a little bit more onerous on their cap however if you’re a team like the Lakers and you save $15 million in the transaction you can kind of put that in in an interest bearing account and say okay if we have to pay

Tax on this extra money over the next three years we did save 15 million when we got him and that again I don’t want to make it seem like he’s definitely going to be a Laker I I because I think that was one it was one thing that W was

Talking about last week is it’s not just the Lakers bidding um but in you the more I look at this dejonte Murray situation even if he’s not the absolute perfect fit for the Lakers um I do think it makes more sense as I more I talk about why they would be interested in

That trade um and there’s another player who might be who might actually make sense for the Lakers and another team you want to talk about which is the Portland Trailblazers who are going nowhere fast um yeah um you know it’s interesting there you know certainly two players um you know

Jeremy Grant signed that five for 160 he his uh restriction came off that number increases where the Kyle kosman contract decreases yeah you know Kyle signed for four for 94 and it it drops like that’s a good contract like that’s 1920 million for him is a good value Grant goes up he

Signed that contract with the intention of trading Kyle kusman someday maybe not in 24 and maybe he goes on and he has a statue outside whatever new arena is being built the Alexandria wherever right but they signed that contract with the intent to eventually trade him I was

Befuddled the moment the Jeremy Grant contract was signed because I’m pretty sure the Blazers knew they were going to trade um uh trade Dame Lillard and even if they weren’t 100% sure that they were going to trade him there was nobody in my view bidding five and 160 for Jeremy

Grant nobody could give him five anyway and with all due respect a guy that I got to know a little bit covering the Olympics with all due respect yeah he was on the Olympic team if you can believe that Um the structure of the contract did not indicate they were signing him to trade him it would make sense for a rebuilding team like Washington to retain an asset just you know designed to be traded they did not do that with this deal with all due respect to our friends in Portland I

Hope you’re doing well Mike schmidtz but um I don’t think it’s the easiest contract to trade however Brogden who is a productive guard um as a shorter deal much shorter deal would be Bobby yeah 225 um this year and next year another one of those players that we’ve talked about in

That that $20 million range so if you’re teams out there that um Brooklyn for example who needs you know listen you know we watch Nets game Spencer DWT is basically out of the rotation at the end of these games they’re finishing with Dennis Smith Jr and how reliable is Ben

Simmons not very uh it’s got two years 80 left you don’t have a point guard next year if you’re sitting on these Phoenix and Dallas picks and um maybe you put some protection on one and see if if uh Portland is willing willing to bite I think he’d be interested in um

Interesting name with the Lakers also um you know brogg in there um I think from Portland’s perspective and scoots played better of late especially the other night he played really well but eventually you’d like to give him the keys at the end of these games here like

You just like from a developmental phase here um and I think he’s already probably playing more minutes than he would I mean part of being a top three pick is you get more minutes because your team stink but like yeah Chanty is probably playing him more

Than he would play on a team that was competitive um yeah like keontay George in in Utah they basically you know had the force they basically had to start him because they had so many injuries and now it’s like 20 20 to 25 minutes is a nice number right like it’s hard you

Know rookie point guards playing north of 30 is a it’s a that’s a tall task yeah so Portland would be you know they’re in rebuild mode and you’d expect them to do that um Jackson tells us SC scoot’s playing 32 minutes a game over the last 10 games yeah and um

Which is what they should do yep um but like yeah I mean like the Brooklyn game the like just for a quick like the the game they won in um in Brooklyn the overtime game like I like you felt like there was an intent to win that game at

No matter what because scoot didn’t played a fourth in overtime and Brogden hit the two big threes at the end yeah which is fine like listen it’s that’s you know one more team I want to ask you about before we go because you just mentioned keante George Utah Jazz yeah

Um the Utah Jazz last year if you remember after trading gobear Donovan Mitchell who else did they trade rice O’Neal buan buan they were very competitive for the first third of the season and then they sort of quiet quit don’t tell anybody um this the inverse is happening

They were pretty terrible at the start of the season um will hardy was coming out saying that was a bleep bleep bleep performance um and despite not being totally healthy they are now in the play theyve won six in a row they’ve won nine of 10 as the result

Of this recording of This podcast they’re ahead of the Lakers well I think they play coming up here they just played them they just played them and beat them um but they are also a team that is still very much in the early throws of a construction we talked about them on a

Podcast recently I talked about how I thought Kelly oen would probably be available but what what do you see for Utah um knowing that Trader Dany is not afraid to make midseason traits yeah I mean it’s uh 15 and four in the last 19 geez that’s really good I mean we

Remembered them being I forgot about Conley they traded Conley too yeah well that was yeah they were you know they started last year 10 and three and then they yeah they were kind of like a five under team at deadline and then moved Mike for a protected whatever top five

Pick from the Lakers um that Minnesota deal here I look at Utah um if you’re looking from a trade standpoint it would be oin and then then you have to ask yourself okay Kelly’s coming off the bench for us he’s been good is there any value in just getting

A couple seconds because he’s on an expiring contract does that make sense for us or we just hold on to him I think the one guy and I think it’s a matter of you know who you ask on from different teams is you know certainly tal Horton Tucker on an expiring 11 million

Contract do teams how do teams view him there um out of the rotation here but I just look at Utah like you know as you’re sitting on so much draft Capital your own first it goes to Oklahoma City it’s top 10 10 protected I want to say

Yeah top 10 protected this year um so you you know you would lose that which is fine like I think for I think for Utah is I want to see where these guys are in a play in a playe like they’re almost like where Oklahoma City was a

Year ago like I want to see in a plane I want to see or in a first round series and then maybe make a decision as far as where they are but they’re deep like seon’s been really good putting John Collins at the five has been really

Smart Walker Kessler is coming off the bench uh fonio has been good Marin’s been great um you don’t have to worry about you um your your fir first round picks that you drafted um you know besides George has played 20 25 minutes at point guard here you can let them

Develop here so I don’t think for me personally like you don’t have to go into deadline saying oh we’ve got these picks we got to move I think we’re one move away from you know being where Minnesota and Denver is because I don’t think they are um so if there’s anything

Out there would probably be oin um I think he would be great in New York um as far as adding another big that can stretch the floor and then as as I far as I said that Horton Tucker expiring yeah so they do have the seventh hardest schedule left um this

These numbers change this is by winning percentage of their opponents these numbers obviously change every day so you check back tomorrow it might be 10th or 5th but they do have a difficult portion of schedule left um uh which by the way Boston has the second easiest schedule left when you’re

Projecting out who may be the overall number one pick that’s a different topic for a different day but um you know I but you know getting into the you know if you look at the teams around them you know of the teams are behind them you know obviously Golden State would figure

They’re going to go but other than that like they might be able to outplay Houston Houston’s about 500 um Memphis is not coming hard so like yeah they got a shot they got a shot to get that play in I I would agree with you there so I

Would um also having said that if they get an offer that Bulls them over for one of their players I don’t think anything’s off the table Hey listen if some team calls and says hey John Collins we really like him two ones you know like I don’t think there’s GNA

Be we’re 15 and four in the last night oh wait wait wait yeah um but it wouldn’t let’s put it this way I think two weeks ago two-ish weeks ago if you’d asked Executives um other Jazz buying or selling they would laugh and say of course they’re selling now I do think

Under certain circumstances that the Jazz would investigate adding a piece especially if it didn’t impact their cap or impact their options I wouldn’t rule it out um I still think that they’ll mostly be taking the calls but I could see them making a call or two um I think their

Situation is Chang to the point where they where Justin zanic and Danny a would at least think about it um you know a if it was sort of a no a lowrisk short-term or higher upside long-term medium-term which is like what they did with John Collins they basically got a

Free a fly a free you Bas got them for free I mean other than they got to pay a salary which but they got to pay people’s salaries because it’s the rules but uh all right Bobby thank you so much for your Insight we really appreciate your time please check out all of

Bobby’s you should definitely follow follow on social media yeah we we’ve got we got Rook me and Kevin Pelton got rookie rankings out which I’m sure makes a lot of people happy out there um that we still have chat number one um we’ve got a couple two-way guys in there and

Can I can I just say um people listen to this pod know how I feel about chat Bon Temps makes fun of me all the time uh I’m super high on chat love him love his game love his temperament love well here’s here’s here’s the thing I asked Brian and I not

A voter right I don’t vote I don’t have any votes and I and I by the way I am a voter and I will remain a voter I I wrote this about Victor and I want I played the hypothetical game okay for the voters out there you didn’t even let

Me get to the butt you didn’t even let me you cut me right off what what happened what would happen if Victor was in Oklahoma City right now right that down the hatches y so so I don’t think it’s a I don’t think it’s a I don’t think they’re mailing that

Rookie to year quite yet to Oklahoma City let the kid let these let this play out a little bit here I just I I literally cannot say a single negative thing about Chad Homen I love everything about him I’ve been I’ve been making jokes behind the scenes about how this

Is the next magic bird wanyama homr it’s a joke but I’m it comes from a a place where I’m Victor wanyama is at is playing 20 28 minutes a game and way less than that recently yeah 20 10 and three blocks and I know he can’t make a shot

Yet I know he can’t make a shot but wait till he does you think he’s never going to be able to shoot that’s all sorry so we got rookie rankings out Bon Temps and I have got the 60 had the 65 game restrictions is going to impact the MVP

Race and all that fun stuff and then we’ve got the trade guides out next week the trade guide is worth the price of ESPN plus if it’s in if it’s on the SPN plus um thank you Bobby thank you Jack thank you for listening we’ll talk to you guys later this week

Brian Windhorst is joined by Bobby Marks to break down some of the most interesting trade scenarios around the league including some surprising buyers, teams looking to get under the tax and who we should be paying the most attention to.
0:00 Intro
1:21 Philadelphia 76ers
9:28 Orlando Magic
15:25 Charlotte Hornets
25:25 New Orleans Pelicans
35:20 Los Angeles Lakers
43:31 Portland Trail Blazers
47:35 Utah Jazz

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