The trade deadline is far away, but that doesn’t mean that teams are not afraid to start making moves. Take the Brooklyn Nets, for example. The team fired their coach after seven games. Nobody is safe in the NBA when the franchise is not living up to expectations. For other teams, some of those expectations are tempered towards not competing, but their world revolves around value. There are players that will be traded at the deadline for draft compensation or salary relief. It’s all about value, though.
If the value is high, a move could be made sooner than later. For some of these tanking teams, the value for some of their players could be high right now. While some teams could wait to trade away their prized possessions, we could see a deal for some of these players as soon as the next few weeks. The NBA rumor mill will never stop spinning, and these 10 players are seeing their names spun around the most.
These 10 players could be traded in November.
10. Jakob Poeltl
If the Spurs keep playing like this, then the team may not trade him. The Spurs opened the season with a 5-3 record and are the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference after eight games. However, the expectation is that the Spurs were going to be one of the worst teams in the league when they traded their lone All-Star, Dejounte Murray, in the offseason. If the Spurs keep winning, they could have the best of both worlds. Their young players could get playoff experience and the team could get compensation for Poeltl.
This team is not a championship team in the end. The Spurs have some very obvious trade targets in Doug McDermott and Josh Richardson, but ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said that Poeltl makes the most sense to deal. He is in the final year of his deal, and Windhorst believes that the Spurs could sign an extension worth $14 million per season. Poeltl could believe he is worth more, and if that relationship cannot generate an extension, the team could move him to get something in return. In eight games, Poeltl has averaged 14.1 points and 11.4 rebounds. Last year, he averaged 13.1 points, 10.8 rebounds, and shot 64.7% from the field.
9. Jae Crowder
The relationship between the Suns and Crowder feels weird. This is a player that was a starter for the team when the Suns qualified for the NBA Finals. Last year, he was a physical bruiser and well respected veteran that helped the team win the most games in the league. However, rumors have been swirling around that the Suns are looking to make a deal involving Crowder. There were reports that the Suns and the Bucks discussed a trade. Now, there is a report circulating that the Suns wanted to go into this season looking to start Cameron Johnson over Crowder.
Crowder started 80 games last season if you count the playoffs. He was a key role player that averaged 9.4 points and 5.3 rebounds last season. In his first season with the Suns, Crowder averaged 38.9% shooting from three-point range. With his physicality, he can guard post players, and we have already mentioned the respect players have for him. Crowder has not played this season and did not report to training camp, both of which were non-injury related.
8. Derrick Rose
While it may not be vintage Derrick Rose, the veteran point guard has produced games of 13 and 12 points in three games this season. His minutes have not stretched over 17 minutes. He is also shooting 52.6% from the field. A recent report said that Rose told the media that he is feeling comfortable despite the limited playing time. The minutes likely contribute to the fact that he was limited to 26 games last season. If you combine his injury history, not playing more than 50 games in a season since 2016-17, the team wants to be careful.
The Knicks have opened the season with a 3-4 record, including three wins in the Eastern Conference. This move will be defined by what the Knicks do in the next few weeks. The team already has a starting point guard in Jalen Brunson, while Immanuel Quickley is younger and faster. If there is any sort of value in return for Rose, don’t be surprised if the Knicks move on.
