The playoff picture is gaining clarity – as teams once on the fence are beginning to declare themselves as buyers or sellers ahead of the trade deadline.

Trade Deadline Countdown: 11 days

Q1. Carmelo Anthony finally hits the open market

The Houston Rockets have alas found a suitor for Carmelo Anthony – whose been exiled from the team since November 8th – trading him and cash to the Chicago Bulls. However, Anthony will not play for the Bulls, as the team intends to trade or waive him prior to the February 7th trade deadline. As compensation for helping Houston free up another roster spot, Chicago received $1.56 million – an amount in excess of the $675,000 needed to cover Anthony’s contract. Houston had up to $2.1 million to send in a trade.

After signing with the Houston Rockets in August, Anthony was billed as a bench scorer – a role he’s never filled in his NBA career. In total he played just 10 games with the Rockets, averaging 13.4 points per game and struggling mightily to fit within Houston’s system. Looking ahead, Anthony will in all likelihood wait until after the trade deadline to sign with a team, thus allowing him to assess each teams current position, before determining the ideal situation for himself. The 10-time All-Star must be patient in choosing his next destination so as to ensure his abilities as a shooter are maximized, and his defensive drawbacks are mitigated.

Q2. Grizzlies open to trading Gasol and Conley

The Memphis Grizzlies have unofficially waved the white flags, as they will begin taking trade offers on franchise cornerstones, center Marc Gasol and guard Mike Conley. Despite their best efforts to bolster the team’s supporting cast – signing Kyle Anderson and Omri Casspi in the summer and bringing in Justin Holiday via trade earlier this month – they’ve come to the realization that they cannot contend with the gauntlet of Western Conference elites.

Gasol, 33, has enjoyed a strong season averaging 15.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game, and has a player option worth $25.5 million for next season that he will likely opt into. Meanwhile Conley, 31, is putting up 20 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.3 rebounds a game, once again placing him firmly in the conversation to be an All-Star. Though the guard’s contract has an early- termination option for the 2020-21 season, his $34.5 million salary becomes fully guaranteed if he plays in 55 games this season. As he has already suited up in 47, trading for him almost assuredly commits a team to paying him $67 million over the next two seasons. This hefty price tag along with Gasol’s age could prove to significantly hinder Memphis’ ability to receive fair value for their stars.

As the organization now shifts their focus to building around 2018 lottery pick Jaren Jackson Jr., management will insist on trade packages including young talent and first-round draft capital. The term remaining on both Gasol and Conley’s deals is of strong advantage to the Grizzlies in the sense that they are under no time pressure to execute any trades. Instead of taking 50 cents on the dollar at the trade deadline, they can simply hold onto both stars and reignite trade talks in the offseason until they receive adequate value for Gasol and Conley.

Q3. The most feasible Marc Gasol trade scenarios

Attempting to construct practical deals centered around Marc Gasol is a difficult proposition due to his contract situation. Whether or not he opts in to the final year of his contract for next season – and for that matter, whether or not he chooses to disclose his intentions to the Grizzlies or any team trading for him – will significantly alter his value. Assuming he doesn’t turn down $25.5 million in salary, these are the most conceivable destinations for Gasol.

Charlotte Hornets:

Trades Bismack Biyombo, Malik Monk, 2019 lottery protected first round pick for Marc Gasol

The Hornets are a painfully obvious suitor for Gasol’s services. Though they currently sit in 8th place in the East, Charlotte is in dire need of talent outside of Kemba Walker and receives little production from their frontcourt. As the all-star guard is in the final year of his contract, it would be wise for the organization to show Walker they remain intent on building a winning team. Biyombo would need to be included for salary matching purposes, while Monk – a young guard under team control – plus a lottery protected first round pick provides Memphis with the young assets they covet.

San Antonio Spurs:

Trades Pau Gasol, Marco Belinelli, Raptors’ 2019 first round pick for Marc Gasol, Omri Casspi

Aside from the entertainment aspect of the Gasol brothers being swapped for each other once again, this trade makes sense for both sides. The Spurs remain in win-now mode with stars DeRozan and Aldridge both under contract through 2020-21 – and should look to upgrade their frontcourt rotation to compete in the loaded Western conference. Though Marc is owed more money than Pau, he has significantly outperformed his brother this season and would thrive in a Spurs offense that often deploys multiple big men. In a depressed market for centers – especially one that is depreciating in value such as Marc – a first round first round pick expected to fall somewhere in the late 20s may prove to be enough of a return for Memphis.

Q4. The most feasible Mike Conley trade scenarios

Of Memphis’ two franchise icons, Conley has far more trade value due to his age, borderline all-star level play this season, and the overall market for guards being much more favourable than that of centers. Though trading for him commits a team to greater money long-term, this also makes him less of a rental player as he would effectively stabilize a team at the point guard position over the next few seasons. Listed below are the most conceivable destinations for Conley.

Detroit:

Trades Reggie Jackson, Jon Leuer, Luke Kennard, 2019 first round pick for Mike Conley

For a team that is sorely in need of better guard play and yearning to make the playoffs, Conley’s availability couldn’t have come at a better time. The Pistons front office proved last year in trading for Blake Griffin that they’re willing to part with future assets in order to bring in high-end talent, and this is yet another opportunity to do so. Taking on Reggie Jackson’s bad contract isn’t ideal, but the Grizzlies have no need for cap space next season and benefit from the inclusion of Kennard and a first round pick. Trading for Conley would likely get Detroit back into the playoffs, and that extra revenue generation is something that matters greatly to some organizations.

Indiana:

Trades Darren Collison, Tyreke Evans, Aaron Holiday, 2019 first round pick for Mike Conley

In the wake of Victor Oladipo suffering a season-ending injury this past week, Indiana is arguably now an even more plausible landing spot Mike Conley.  With their title hopes seemingly dashed, the Pacers could afford to forfeit much of their guard depth this season by trading away Collison, Evans, and Holiday. Adding Conley for the final years of his prime would solidify the Pacers core and raise the ceiling on how far this team can go in the playoffs moving forward. Though this would eliminate much of their projected cap space this summer, bringing in talent via trade is arguably a better use of that cap room given the difficulty small-market teams have attracting big name free agents.

Other things to note:

• January 21: Kenneth Faried signed a 1 year $917k contract with Houston.
• January 23: Pacers star guard Victor Oladipo ruptured quad tendon in his right knee.
• January 24: Kevin Love signing restriction is lifted, making him trade eligible.
• January 25: Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie will undergo thumb surgery, out 3-6 weeks.
• January 25: Corey Brewer signs second 10-day contract with the 76ers.
• January 26: Thon Maker requests trade from Milwaukee Bucks.

Weekly Forecast:

• Monday: Nets vs. Celtics
• Tuesday: 76ers vs. Lakers
• Wednesday: Bulls vs. Heat (Dwyane Wade’s final game against hometown team)
• Thursday: Bucks vs. Raptors, 76ers vs. Warriors
• Friday: Rockets vs. Nuggets
• Saturday: Lakers vs. Warriors
• Sunday: Thunder vs. Celtics