NBA trade deadline is a month away. Which teams may be looking to
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The NBA trade deadline is a month away, and there is plenty of chatter circulating among league executives about what might happen before the Feb. 9 deadline.
Several teams are maneuvering – trying to improve their rosters, reduce their payrolls, acquire draft picks, figure out if a player on an expiring contract is worth keeping or trading.
What will the Los Angeles Lakers do? Is Kyle Kuzma the most sought-after player and will the Washington Wizards trade him? What’s going on with the Toronto Raptors?
Let’s take a look at some of the prominent teams and players ahead of the trade deadline:
Los Angeles Lakers
Interesting times for the Lakers. LeBron James, who is playing great regardless of his age, seems to want the Lakers to make a move. But with Anthony Davis injured and the Lakers in 13th place in the West (but just three games from fifth place), is there a deal that makes the Lakers anything better than a play-in participant and first-round exit? The time to make a deal was before the season. Will the Lakers make one ahead of the deadline or be content to celebrate James passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on the NBA’s all-time scoring list and use their expected salary cap space in the summer to build a contender for 2023-24?
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors are a hot topic. Will they blow it up? Make minor moves? Do nothing at all? It’s another interesting situation because the Raptors have players other teams want, including Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Fred VanVleet and Scottie Barnes, the 2021-22 Rookie of the Year. Adding intrigue is the contract situations: Siakam and Anunoby can become free agents in 2024, VanVleet a free agent following this season and Barnes is looking for a significant raise on a rookie extension. The 17-23 Raptors have financial decisions to make at some point. Keep this in mind, too: Under team president Masai Ujiri and general manager Bobby Webster, the Raptors are not known for major deals at the trade deadline. VanVleet is worth…
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