NBA Trade Deadline 2020: 5 buried veterans who could help a contender

1. Thaddeus Young

Thaddeus Young‘s 22.3 minutes per game represent the highest playing time average on this list, but make no mistake about it: He’s buried in the Chicago Bulls‘ rotation, and that’s not going to change as long as Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. are in the Windy City.

Da Bulls have gotten off to a disappointing 14-27 start, and despite only being five games out of a postseason berth in the Eastern Conference, nothing about this group screams “legitimate playoff squad.” Young is reportedly not very thrilled with how he’s being deployed by Jim Boylen, and he’s certainly not the only player on the roster disgruntled with the head coach’s old-school approach.

Chicago added veterans over the summer in the hopes of assembling a dark horse playoff squad, but seeing as how that’s not exactly falling into place, the front office might as well explore trades that can capitalize on Young’s remaining trade value before it begins to dissipate.

Though he’s only averaging 8.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game — his lowest numbers since his rookie season in 2007-08 — Young remains an effective and versatile two-way player. He’s not much of a 3-point shooter, canning only 32.8 percent of his triples over the course of his career, but on a better team, the scoring, defense and positional flexibility he’d provide could be worth the investment.

Like Dedmon, however, the biggest problem with Young might be the remaining years on his contract. He’s only making $12.9 million this season, but is owed $13.5 million next season, as well as $14.2 million in 2021-22 (though it’s non-guaranteed). The 31-year-old forward can certainly help teams in need of frontcourt depth, but whether they’ll be interested the other two years beyond this season remains to be seen.