NBA Trade Rumors for 2016-17 Season: Rudy Gobert, John Wall to Lakers, Greg Monroe to Be Traded
As the 2016-17 NBA regular season draws near, most teams have already completed their rosters. Whether their newly formed teams are effective or not remains to be seen; trades will occur during the regular season and rumors have already sufficed. Here are the latest NBA trade rumors.
1. Rudy Gobert to Los Angeles Lakers
According to the latest rumors, Rudy Gobert may be the talented center the Los Angeles Lakers is looking for. While the team acquired Timofey Mozgov with a huge deal, the Lakers seemed to be rueful over this decision since Mozgov got injured in the off-season.
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Rudy Gobert seems pleased with his role in his current team, the Utah Jazz, but the Jazz might consider trading him as it is the center's last season before he enters free agency. Gobert might opt to leave the franchise and play for another team. A trade would be useful for the Jazz if they are confident Gobert will leave next season.
A tweet reports that the Lakers are interested in Rudy Gobert. Gobert averaged 9.1 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game. The stat line shows that he is one of the most effective defensive big man in the league. He is also a monster in the rebounding department.
One possible trade scenario between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Utah Jazz is this: Gobert will go to the Lakers in exchange for Jordan Clarkson or D'Angelo Russell. Utah could use a more consistent point guard than George Hill.
2. Bucks to Trade Away Greg Monroe
According to recent rumors, the Milwaukee Bucks are looking to trade their 6'11" center slash power forward Greg Monroe, as the team continues to look for the right front court man for their system.
So far, no team has expressed interest in getting Greg Monroe. That might change according to Yibada; a suggestion was made to put Jabari Parker in the mix to get teams drawn to a Bucks trade.
Boston Celtics may be a good destination for Greg Monroe. Monroe is a great offensive center, which the Celtics need; the Green already has players that can cover for his weaknesses on the defensive end.
Including Jabari Parker might make the Monroe trade even more appealing. As a sophomore with lots of room to grow, Parker averaged 14.1 points, 5.2 rebounds an 1.7 assists per game last season.
If the deal pushes through, Parker and Monroe will be sent to the Celtics, and the Bucks may receive Jonas Jerebko, Marcus Smart and Amir Johnson. The trade will help both teams in terms of balancing out the number of players they have per position.
Monroe averaged 15.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game.
3. D'Angelo Russell to the Wizards
D'Angelo Russell has shown spurts of brilliance last season. In his rookie year, he averaged 13.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. Moreover, he handled the limelight left over by Kobe Bryant's retirement well.
Russell has made several rookie mistakes over the 2015-16 NBA season, but that is expected. He already has the skills that need refinement through practice and experience. However, if the Washington Wizards decide to give John Wall, a super star in his own right, in exchange for Russell, the Lakers are more than willing to give up their number 2 overall draft pick, at least according to John Michaels of Yibada.
Wall averaged 19.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game last season. Wall has been with the NBA for 6 seasons now, and last season was his best from a production perspective. At this point, Wall is definitely the better player between the two.
Wall is better in terms of being a facilitator, and the Lakers definitely need someone with a pass-first philosophy. Loaded with scorers that need to be open to be effectual (Randle, Ingram and Clarkson), Wall will definitely make an immediate impact on the offensive end. Not only that, Wall is an underrated perimeter defender.
Given these (and more) attributes, the Lakers are likely to show their interest in case the Wizards announce their super star point guard is on the trading block.
