NBA Trade Deadline: Names To Watch

Story posted February 7, 2022 in CommRadio, Sports by Patrick Lepre

The NBA trade deadline is approaching. Here is who could be on their way to a new team in the coming weeks.

Ben Simmons

It is obviously no secret that Simmons wants out of Philadelphia after sitting out the entirety of this season so far.

The 76ers have been shopping him this entire season but have not been budging on any of their offers. It’s hard to imagine the 76ers not trading Simmons to acquire some sort of assets to help them push for a title with Embiid having this team in a great position himself to do so.

It's remored that a James Harden deal could be in the works, but it looks like it would take a lot from both sides to get a deal done by Thursday's deadline.

Complete Pacers Rebuild

It was reported earlier in the season that the Pacers were leaning towards rebuilding rather than competing currently.

With Domantas Sabonis, Caris LeVert or Myles Turner being available it’s hard to imagine some sort of contender not entertaining offers. Even players like Justin Holiday and Torrey Craig can be the final piece a contending team needs.

Watch out to see if the Pacers follow through with the reported rebuild.

Bradley Beal

Bradley Beal has been reported to be open to a trade before the deadline. With the Wizards slowly losing a grip on their playoff chances as they aren’t even in the Play-In Tournament currently, this shouldn’t be a shock.

Beal has strayed away from trade talks in prior seasons hoping eventually there would be some improvement in Washington, but that hasn’t come to fruition. A likely suitor for Beal would be the 76ers as a deal has already been proposed but the 76ers are not willing to give up as much as the Wizards want.

This is definitely a trade to keep an eye on as it seems it’s been a long time coming.

Jerami Grant

It’s quite obvious the Pistons are not going anywhere anytime soon.

Jerami Grant went to the Pistons to have a bigger role than what he had in Denver. While he has that bigger role, they aren’t winning anytime soon and there is no doubt teams will be calling to add him to their team.

The issue with Grant is his contract. He is supposed to make $20.1 million before free agency in 2022-23. So for Grant, there are a few more factors that are in play along with just acquiring him and plugging him into the lineup.

Atlanta Hawks Reconstruction

After making the Eastern Conference Finals last season, many would find it hard to believe that the Hawks are now in talks to tear it all down. 

The Hawks have deemed everyone but Trae Young fair game in a trade. Cam Reddish has already been traded to the New York Knicks.

The most common name in trade talks right now is John Collins. It’ll be interesting to see what the Hawks do as this can be a huge outlook on Young’s Hawk Career.

Patrick Lepre is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email pjl5466@psu.edu.