Despite Time On The Rumor Mill, These Are The NBA’s Untradeables

NBA training camp is set to open next week and for some players, arrival will be met not so much with a, “Welcome back!” but more of a, “You’re still here?!?

The league’s very short offseason saw major changes all around, but there remains a group of players who just cannot seem to get themselves traded. Chris Paul and his sizable contract were finally traded away from Oklahoma City, the Sixers found a taker for Josh Richardson, and, heck, even Danny Green was dealt — for Al Horford, no less.

But there are guys who, despite having their names wrung through the rumor mill repeatedly, appear to be headed back to their same old teams, having been the subjects of much discussion but little action. An NBA front-office executive weighed in on each player to explain why a trade has been so stubbornly hard to come by.

DeMar DeRozan, Spurs

Background: DeRozan has been portrayed as a less-than-enthusiastic Spur, though if he is unhappy with his situation, he has not let it affect his performance—DeRozan averaged 22.1 points last year on 53.1% shooting from the field (he only rarely takes 3s), with 5.5 rebounds and 5.6 assists. Pretty tradeable, right?

Contract: 1 year remaining, $27.7 million (opted in).

Rumors: At this time last year, a rumor made the rounds about DeRozan garnering interest from Orlando, but the potential for that deal died on the vine. In between, the Heat were considered legitimate pursuers of DeRozan, with the Rockets and Pistons also getting a mention.Most recently, the Lakers were said to have interest in DeRozan, but that possibility all but dried up once the team used Danny Green’s contract to acquire Dennis Schroder.

Exec’s view: “I think no one wanted to make the dive on him last year because they were not certain about the contract. The stuff with the Magic, that was never really close. A lot of teams see how much he likes the midrange, too, and just say, ‘No, thanks.’ We all want 3s now. So he’s a tough sell.”

Aaron Gordon, Magic

Background: Gordon has always been a talented player who just can’t put together consistent stretches long enough to maximize that talent. He does lots of things pretty well—he can defend, he is a good passer from the forward spot, he is a decent enough rebounder—but nothing great. He had a rough start last year but bounced back and finished with 14.4 points (the third straight year his scoring average declined) on 43.7% shooting, with 7.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He played better when fellow forward Jonathan Isaac was injured, and the seeming incompatibility of Isaac and Gordon is one of the drivers of trade rumors around Gordon.

Contract: 2 years, $18.1 million and $16.4 million.

Rumors: The Warriors have long been the team with the most rumored interest in Gordon, but a deal that would have slotted him into the Golden State traded-player exception for a 2021 first-round pick—essentially, the deal the Warriors did for Kelly Oubre from the Thunder—was not nearly enough for the Magic. The Blazers have also been linked to Gordon and offered Orlando the same package it gave to Houston for Robert Covington (the 16th pick in 2020 and a first-rounder next year), but the Magic rejected that. There was some talk about Russell Westbrook landing in Orlando, with Gordon going to Houston, but those talks did not get very far.

Exec’s view: “They still like Gordon. I think they’re open to trading him and they have had conversations about him. But he is a guy who has very high highs and very low lows. When you get an idea of what the Magic want for him, it is, they want something based on his highs. They want a deal that will be based on when he is 25 (points) and 10 (rebounds) for a long stretch. But the rest of us go, ‘What about this stretch where he was eight points, seven rebounds?’ That is what happens a lot of times. They want to build around Isaac, too, but he keeps getting hurt so that is going to make you trigger-shy.”

Buddy Hield, Kings

Background: Hield has been unhappy in Sacramento for more than a year, going back to the team’s initial offer of a contract extension last October, one he called an, “insult.” Things did not improve much from there, even after Hield and the Kings agreed to a new deal. He slumped with his shot, which he was not happy about. He was pulled from the fourth quarter of games because of his defense, which he was not happy about. He was pulled from the starting five and moved to the bench, which he was definitely not happy about. Hield still scored 19.2 points per game and made 39.4% of his 3-pointers, but it was a vert uneven year.

Contract: 4 years (descending), $24.4 million, $22.5 million, $20.5 million, $18.6 million.

Rumors: There was talk that the Sixers, eager for shooting, would look to bring in Hield, and that talk as accelerated when Hield “liked” some posts about the Sixers on social media this offseason. But that was before Philly was able to trim some salary by bringing in Seth Curry, a sort of poor man’s Hield.

Exec’s view: “Not much of a market for him. He is a tremendous shooter, everyone knows that. But he’s a pain. He’s been in everybody’s doghouse. And you will have him for four more years. It would be worth it for them to bring him back, let him rebuild his value and maybe try to move him later.”

Victor Oladipo, Pacers

Background: Things had been going swimmingly for Oladipo in Indiana, where he had a professional breakout, making two All-Star teams after struggling to find a consistent role in the NBA. But he ruptured his quadriceps and spent most of the year rehabbing. When he did come back, according to a report in the Indy Star, Oladipo was so eager to get out of Indiana that he was asking opposing players if he could come play for them.

Contract: 1 year, $21 million.

Rumors: Milwaukee was one team that had considered a deal for Oladipo, but the Pacers wanted more than what the Bucks offered, a package that included a good young player (Donte DiVincenzo) and a first-round draft pick. It is hard to imagine Indiana getting a better offer. The Heat, Knicks and Lakers all considered Oladipo, too, but none were going to meet the Pacers’ price.

Exec’s view: “Not much of a market here, either. You can understand the impulse to want to take a chance on him, it is a one-year deal, he is a free agent. But you cannot give up too much for that, for a rental that might not work out. We just do not know how healthy he is going to be. That injury is a tough one, there are not a lot of players how have had it. So we do not know how a guy comes back from it. It is too risky.”

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