The NBA Draft is approaching on Thursday and as teams try to scramble to figure out who to select a number of rumors have been floating around about trades, mainly involving Chicago Bulls star Luol Deng, Blazers forward LaMarcus Aldridge as well as the Pacers' Danny Granger.
According to ESPN.com writer Ric Bucher, all three players could be on the move before the NBA draft and one could be traded for the number one overall pick from the Cleveland Cavaliers. Luol Deng is one of the names that has come up the most with the Chicago Bulls and rumors have him in two different deals, including in a package for the first overall pick. ESPN.com reports that Deng to the Wizards for the number three picks has also been discussed.
The report says that Chicago first started to try and gauge how much value they could get for Deng and now other reports have come out that say the team is trying to sign him to an extension. The deal to the Wizards would have some moving parts, as it would include Emeka Okafor, who would have to opt into his contract, which is worth $14.5 million next season. Deng is one of the core players for the Bulls and he was forced to miss time in the playoffs due to an injury.
The Wizards trade appears to not have much momentum, but the Cavaliers appeared to be very interested in Deng and that could be more of a possibility. The Cavaliers have a number of draft picks and they feel they are close enough to turning around that they would trade away the number one pick for an All-Star caliber player. The team has a good core with Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson and if they hold onto the pick they will likely select Nerlens Noel or Alex Len first overall.
The Deng trade isn't the only thing that the Cavaliers have discussed, including possibly acquiring Paul Pierce for multiple draft picks, likely two of their second round selections. The Boston Globe reported the news but said that any deal was in the very early stages. On top of all that, the team is also discussing a possible deal to the Dallas Mavericks involving Shawn Marion, who would have to opt into his contract for any trade to go down.
The league is filled with trade rumors and one team that has been mentioned a lot as well is the Minnesota Timberwolves with deals involving Derrick Williams. So far trade talk with him has cooled, but that could change as the draft gets closer, with the Clippers and Knicks being possible destinations. The Cavaliers likely will stay with the pick, as most of the trades will need time to develop and with the draft Thursday at 7 PM from the Barclays Center, they don't have much more time left to deal.
