NBA Trade Rumors: Some All Stars are on the Move

The NBA’s Feb. 18 trade deadline is inching closer and the rumours are swirling. Here’s some of the latest buzz from around the league.

Should Clippers move Griffin?

The Skinny: Zach Lowe raised a few eyebrows in a recent story on ESPN.com, citing sources that told him Doc Rivers would be most willing to part with Blake Griffin if he had to deal any of his three major pieces (the other two being Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan).Analysis: Griffin has dominated NBA headlines lately after getting into an altercation with a team staffer that resulted in a broken hand during the Clippers’ trip to Toronto. Griffin is Los Angeles’s best overall player and would net the largest return if a trade were to happen. Now in his sixth season, the first overall pick in the 2009 draft remains one of the game’s top talents, averaging 23.2 points, 8.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists on 51 per cent shooting.
Despite the recent drama, a trade involving the five-time all-star is extremely unlikely at the moment and would seem to be an overreaction for the ages. However, Rivers did tell Lowe before the season that a roster shakeup may be necessary if the Clippers were eliminated in the first or second round of the playoffs. If an overwhelming package of players and draft picks comes along, Los Angeles could pull the trigger. Don’t hold your breath on this one, though.

Hawks willing to part with Teague?

The Skinny: On an episode of The Vertical podcast, Adrian Wojnarowski and Chris Mannix of Yahoo! Sports reported the Atlanta Hawks are discussing moving point guard Jeff Teague. Numerous teams have allegedly expressed varying degrees of interest in the former all-star.
Analysis: Dealing with a nagging ankle injury, Teague's numbers are down across the board in 2015-16 and he has become somewhat expendable for the Hawks due to the emergence of backup Dennis Schroder. Schroder is averaging nearly 11 points and five assists per game in just 21 minutes of action. When expanded to a per-36-minute level, the numbers exceed Teague's production. At just 22 years of age, Schroder appears to be the floor general of the future in Atlanta.
However, for a team looking to add an impact player at the trade deadline, it's hard to imagine landing a better asset than Teague. He's still very much in his prime at 27 years old and is just one year removed from an All-Star Game appearance. His salary is team-friendly as he's due to make just $8 million next season.